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The  priqciple^  of  Religion. 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 

GIFT  OF 


H.   D.  KIRSCHMAM 


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ciJd^/  /  i^r^^ 


Ccc<o     ^^-/f^^ 


GOD  AND  MAN. 


ESSAYS  ON  GOD  AND  MAN 


PHILOSOPHICAL  INQUIRY 


PRINCIPLES  OF  RELIGION 


Rev.  henry  TRURO  BRAY,  M.  A.,  B.  D.,  LL.  D. 

Rector  of  Christ  Church,  lioonrille.  Mo. 


THIRD  AXD  RR  VISED  KDITIOS 


CHICAGO 

Truro  Puhi.ishing  Compant 
1S99 


Entered  According  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  j-ear  1888,  by 

HENRY  TRURO  BRAY, 
In  ilie  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  tVashington. 


THE  REGAN  PRINTING  HOUSE,   CHICAGO. 


CONTENTS: 


BOOK  FIRST. 

Tin:  KNOWMULITY  OI<   T.OD 

A:  Science  and  Simple  Tlirism. 
H:   Science  and  jSatiiral  Hi'lij^ion. 
C:    Science  and  lievi-ak-d  Kelijiiou. 
(A)  :  Revelation  in  General. 

a:  The  Fact  of  a  Revelation. 

(a)  :  Is  a  Revelation  Possible? 

(b)  :   Is  a  Revelation  I'seless? 

(c)  :   Has  a  Revelation  I'vn-  \u-rn  made? 
(B):   Tlie  Cliristian  Revelation. 

a :  Its  Nature  and  Claims. 

(a)  :  Orisjin  and  Growth  of  the  New  Testament 
Scriptures, 
I:   Of  the  Gospels. 
II:  Of  tlie  Acts,  Epistles,  and  Apocalypse. 
b:  Its  Settlement  and  Character. 

(a)  :   Its  Settlement.. 

(b)  :    Its  Character. 

c:  Clirislianily  compared  with  Other  Religious. 
(a)  :   Its  Exclusive  Claim  not  admitted. 
(b.) :  In   Doctrinal   Essentials  it  is  One  with 
Otiier  Religious. 
I :  Immortality. 

II:  God  is  the  First  I'riuciple  and  Intelligent. 
Ill:   God   the  Origiu  and  Ruler  of  All. 
(I)  :   Necessary  for  Creation. 
(II):   Necessary  for  Government. 
IV:  God  is  the  Fatlier  of  All. 
V:   Rewards  and  runishments  come  from  God. 
VI:  God  looks  to  the  Heart. 

VII<  Liberality  and  Forgiveness  must  be  practiced, 
VIII :  Purity  above  All  Tiiiuirs. 
IX  :  God  is  Good. 
X  :   God  is  Imnnitable. 
XI;  The  Youug  should  l)e  educated   w;ili  (Jreat  Care. 

(ill) 


Q.KA  tzryn 


iv  Contents. 

D;  The  Geueral  Evolution  of  the  Conception  of  God. 

a:   All  Kcliiiious  express  an  Eternal  Truth, 
b:  All  Hfliiiious  the  Work  of  Evolution. 
-^  c:  All  Keligions  Good  for  the  Time  and  Place. 

d :  Keligious  being  Universal  and  in   Essence  One, 
must  be  True. 

BOOK  THE  SECOND. 

TIIH  IMMORTALITY  OF  THE  SOIL. 

A:  Some  Keasons  in  Disproof  of  the  Immortality  of  the  Soul, 
a  :  Facts  in  Disproof  of  the  Soul's  Immortality, 
(a):  Death. 
The    Continuation   of    Life   after   Death,    in  No   Case 
satisfactorily  and  conclusively  proved. 
(I)  :   Resurrections. 
(II):  Ghosts. 
(Ill):   Spirit-Kevelations, 

(b)  The  Nature  of  Man  essentially  the  Same 

as  That  of  the  Animal  World  in  Geueral. 

I:  riiysiological. 

II:  Psychological. 

(I)  :   1  Season. 

(II)  :   Speech. 

b:  Presumptions    in   Disproof    of  the   Soul's    Im- 
mortality 

(a)  :  It  is  Possible  that  Mind  is  but  a  Mode  of 

Material  Action. 

(b)  :  It  is  Possible  that  the  Individual  Mind 

is  but  a  Mode  of  Action  of   the   Uni- 
versal and  Intinite  Mind. 
B:   Some  Reasons  in  I^roof  of  the  iMiinortality  of  the  Soul. 

a  :  The  Fact  that  Humanity  as  a  Whole  believes  in  It. 
b:  The  Fact  that  Belief  in  Immortality   seems  Con- 
sonant with  the  Teachings  of  Philosophy, 
c:  The  Presumption  that  Mind   is  not  a  Mere  Mode 

nor  Result  of  Material  Action, 
d:  The  Fact  of  Religion  and  Human  Coiilidence  in  It. 
(a):    Man  naturally  Religious. 

(b)  :   Hard  to  believe  that  What  is  Natural  and 

apparently  Necessary  to  True   Develop- 
ment, can  be  False. 

(c)  :  The  True  Revelation. 


Contents. 
BOOK  tup:  THIHI). 

SlUDS  (»H  IMACINAHY  (^T  A  NTITIKS. 

A  :   The  Accepted  Origin  of  Evil. 
H:   The  Fall  of  Mau  aud  Oriixiiial  Sin. 
C:  The  Ouly  Revelatiou,  the  Ouly  Savior. 
D:  Blood-Atonement  aud  Vicarious  Sacrifice. 
E  :  Damnation  or  Future  Punishment. 
I:   Tlie  Situation  of  lleli. 

II:  Tlie  Duration  of  tlie  runislimeut. 

Ill:   Tlie  Characti-r  of  the  Punishment. 

IV:  The  Universality  of  tin;  Punishment. 


CONCLUSION. 

1:   Sin. 

2:  Ignorance  and  Weakness. 

3:  Every  Power  a  Power  for  Gooc 

4:  Ignorance  not  in  Itself  an  Evil. 

5:  The  Devil. 

(; :  A  Priestly  Fabric. 

7 :  The  True  Fall. 

8 :  The  True  Atonement. 

9:  Character  not  changed  by  Death. 
10:  The  Essentials  of  True  Religion. 
11 :  A  Farewell  to  Surds. 


PREFACE. 


Does  the  reader  ask  '"wliat  does  the  author  expect  to 
accomplish  by  the  publication  of  ttiis  work?"  That  men  are 
everywliere  drifting  away  from  the  old  beliefs,  will  not  be 
questioned.  The  power  of  the  church  of  the  past,  will  con- 
tinue a  little  longer  to  govern  tlie  opinions  of  women  ;  but  over 
the  minds  of  men  she  has  lost  all  influence.  Of  course  there 
are  not  a  few  simple-minded  men  who  are  still  awed  by 
her  threats  and  established  by  her  promises  ;  but  the  intellect 
of  the  world  has  undoubtedly  lost  all  faith  in  the  church  of  the 
past.  The  thoughtful  mind  cannot  accept,  as  essential  to 
salvation,  a  faith  based  upon  the  miraculous,  in  violation  of 
all  the  known  laws  of  nature,  subversive  of  our  higher  con- 
ceptions of  the  Divine  Character,  and  in  contradiction  of 
all  trustworthy  human  experience.  The  whole  independent 
and  scholarly  world  rejects  nearl}^  all  the  dogmas  of  the  church 
of  the  past,  and  nine  male  church-members  out  of  every  ten 
are  more  or  less  full  of  distressing  doubt.  The  experience 
of  the  author  is,  that  he  scarcely  ever  finds  a  man  who 
believes  unqualifiedly  the  doctrines  of  the  pulpit;  and  the 
pulpits  are  full  of  men  who  doubt  the  truth  of  what  they 
themselves  preach.  Speaking  of  such,  says  Prof.  Seeley  of 
Oxford:  "  In  the  ardor  of  conflict  they  have  pushed  into 
the  foreground  all  the  weakest  parts  of  their  creed,  and  have 
learnt  the  habit  of  asserting  most  vehemently,  just  what 
they  doubt  most,  because  it  is  what  is  most  denied.  As 
their  own  belief  ebbs   awa}'  from  them,  thev  Jvre  precluded 


viii  '  Preface. 

from  learuing  a  new  one,  because  they  are  too  deeply 
ple.lged.  As  their  advocacy  grows  first  a  little  forced,  they 
by  degrees  become  consciously  hypocritical,  until  in  the  end 
they  secretly  confess  themselves  to  be  on  the  wrong  side. 
Wha*;  a  moral  dissolution !  Such  men  may  often  be  noted 
among  ^iie  most  intelligent  adherents  of  expiring  causes." 
The  aixthor  hopes  in  a  measure  to  lead  his  readers  to 
discriminate  between  the  evanescent  and  the  permanent,  be- 
tween the  local  and  the  universal,  between  the  temporal  and 
the  eternal ;  and  to  know  that  while  they  may  doubt  and 
reject  the  evanescent,  the  local,  or  the  temporal,  they  should 
not,  and  may  not,  reject  the  permanent,  the  universal,  or  the 
eternal.  The  words  of  Jesus  as  given  in  the  Sermon  on 
the  Mount,  are  but  the  continuation  and  ratification  of  that 
universal  and  permanent  teaching  which  no  man  can  refuse 
without  jeopardising  his  own  interests,  and  they  will  remain 
as  a  [)art  and  parcel  of  God's  universal  revelation  long  after 
the  dogmas  of  the  church  are  buried  in  past  oblivion. 

The  author  cannot  offer  a  stone  to  him  who  asks  a  fish, 
nor  can  he  advise  a  man  to  make  much  of  little  or  little  of 
much ;  but  as  the  "  voice  of  one  crying  in  the  wilderness," 
the  author  would  advise  the  reader  to  trust  himself  to,  and 
carefully  obey,  those  universal  and  eternal  principles  of 
morality  and  religion  that  clearly  tell  him  "  whatsoever  a 
man  soweth,  that  shall  he  reap." 

The  author  was  l)rouglit  u[)  in  the  Church  of  England, 
and  taught  from  his  earliest  recollection  that  man  cannot 
live  on  bread  alone;  and  he  believes  that  he  has  not  known 
a  day  when  he  did  not  pray  to  that  dear  God  who  is  the 
Father  and  Saviour  of  all.     In   his  childhood,  prayer  was 


Preface.  ix 

imposed  upon  him,  mornin«j  and  evening;  in  liis  yinilli  it 
became  his  conscious  (hitv;  in  his  manhood  it  is  liis  conso- 
lation and  habit. 

The  thoughts  embodied  in  this  work  are  the  product  of 
the  sincere  and  long-continued  consideration  of  the  sub- 
jects discussed,  supported  ])y  the  most  eminent  authorities 
of  every  age. 


BooNViLLK,  Mo..  June,  1888. 


Henry  Tiu:ko  Bray. 


PREFACE  TO  THIRD  EDITION. 

The  author  has  thought  much  and  deeply  on  the  mat- 
ters that  led  to  his  deposition  from  the  priesthood.  That 
much  has  been  lost  he  cannot  deny  ;  but  he  is  unable  to 
see  how  he  could  have  acted  otherwise  than  he  acted. 
Nothing  is  so  utterly  debasing  as  outwardly  to  confess 
what  inwardly  we  renounce ;  and  after  years  of  re- 
flection, and  peculiarly  close  intercourse  with  thinking 
men,  the  author  is  more  than  ever  convinced  of  the  neces- 
sity of  a  broader  and  more  rational  faith.  However  great 
inhumanity  man  may  show  his  brother,  he  is  not  selfish 
enough  to  deny  him  the  right  to  be  called  a  son  of  the 
Father,  nor  wicked  enough  to  believe  that  God  has  a 
favorite  child  ;  and  any  teaching  that  shows  God  as  more 
mindful  of  one  than  of  another,  man  is  forced  to  reject  as 
untrue. 

It  is  the  author's  aim  to  show  the  universal  character 
of  God's  love  ;  that  the  whole  creation  is  his  child,  ever 
proceeding  from  him  ;  that  the  eternal  Father  is  ever 
speaking  to  his  children  ;  that  no  man  is  an  orphan,  or 
without  the  knowledge  of  the  way  to  life,  or  the  possibil- 
ity of  walking  therein. 

Henry  Truro  Br.w. 

Chicago,  111.,  1899. 


•'  On  a  dit  justement  que  c'est  avec  Ifc  sang  de  son  coeur  qu'  il 
ecrit."  (Said  of  Pascal:) 

"So  I  like  life  and  I  also  like  righteousness;  if  I  cannot  keep 
the  two  together,  I  will  let  life  go  and  choose  righteousness." 

(Mencius.) 


BOOK  THE  FIRST. 


THK   KXOAVABTLITY   OP   GOD. 

From  the  cradle  full  of  nervous  energy  to  the  grave  wrapt 
in  deepest  gloom,  man's  mind  is  strained  with  the  perplexing 
questions  and  increasing  duties  of  the  age.  The  civilised 
world  thinks  upon  a  high  platform  ;  her  views  are  panora- 
mic, her  actions  methodical.  Visionaries  and  sensational- 
ists in  politics  are  giving  way  to  such  as  know  that  the 
state  is,  as  it  were,  a  living  organism,  and  that  it  must  b.. 
dealt  with  accordingly  ;  and  in  tlie  scientific  world  nothing 
is  received  unless  it  has  withstood  tlie  fiercely  heated  fires 
of  sceptical   criticism.     Plutarch's    words: 

War  is  the  father  of  all  things," 
are  especially  realised  to-day.  In  the  nineteenth  century 
we  live  under  the  reign  of  law.  Magic,  sorcery,  witch- 
craft, miracles,  have  all  disappeared.  Even  the  young  and 
ordinar}'^  intellect  discusses  those  matters  which  might  well 
strike  the  most  cultivated  and  profound  mind  with  awe, 
lest  in  attempting  their  solution  he  should  miss  his  way, 
groping  in  the  all-pervading  darkness. 

■  There  are  many  scientists  who  lean  on  the  bosom  of 
Christ ;  but  the  great  majorit}',  though  seeing  in  him  the 
true  out-come  of  man's  luingiT  ami  thirst  after  a  higher  and 

(1) 


2  Essays  on   God  and  Man, 

nobler  life,  do  not  regard  the  Galilean  as  the  strong  Son  of 
God,  By  ignorant  religionists  these  latter  are  cursed;  but- 
the  true  Christian  scholar  is  ever  ready  to  see  even  in  them, 
though  adversaries,  pillars  of  virtue  and  earnest  thought. 
Ever}'  day  are  we  painfully  convinced  that  appearances  may 
have  no  reality.  Men's  words,  professions,  and  protesta- 
tions may  have  no  foundation.  Medicine-men,  prophets, 
miracle-workers,  and  priests  have  so  duped  mankind  and 
filled  the  world  with  sham,  that  thinking  men  universally 
have  become  suspicious  and  sceptical.  This  doubting  mind 
so  generally  exhibited  has  been  to  no  small  extent  the  chief 
cause  of  the  great  scientific  advance  made  during  the  last 
fifty  3''ears.  Honest  doubt  is  the  noble  mother  who  gives 
birth  to  offspring  truly  great : 

"  E(T~i    8-    To'.^  euTTopr^/Tat    (ii>'jXi)0!xsvo'.~    —poopyo'j    to    d:ar:ii- 
prjffac  xa?.w^  —  It  is  of  the  greatest  importance  that  those 
who  would  become  masters  of  a  subject,  should  use  hones 
doubt  in  their  investigations."     (Aristotle:  Met.  II,  1,  2). 

So  says  Montaigne : 

"  Beaucoup  savoir  apporte  occasion  de  plus  doubter — ■ 
He  who  would  learn  much,  must  doubt  much." 

The  wisdom  of  these  assertions  has  been  fully  demonstra- 
ted b}'  the  great  scientific  discoveries  of  the  last  century,  for 
everywhere  have  scientists  proceeded  along  the  lines  of  doubt. 
This,  therefore,  is  a  mistrustful  age.  Not  to  mistrust  would 
be  to  be  mistrusted.  Man  would  receive  brass  for  gold,  igno- 
rance for  wisdom,  and  nonsense  for  sound  philosophy.  The 
credulous  are  everywhere  deceived  by  the  shams  around  us  ; 
imposition  is  practiced  on  every  hand.  The  knowledge  of 
these  facts  cannot  but  make  the  thoughtful  mind  mistrustful 


A  Philosophical  Inqninj  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.     3 

and  inf{uisitivc.  Nothing  is  beautiful  except  that  which  is 
true.  If  a  thing  be  not  real,  its  beauty,  whatever  it  may  be, 
is  not  existent,  but  only  imaginary.  No  part  of  man's 
nature  has  been  so  much  imposed  upon  as  his  religious. 
Whether  from  a  too-exalted  opinion  of  himself,  or  from  an 
innate  propensity  God-ward,  man  is  certainly  ver\'  c  edu- 
ious  about  things  supposed  to  connect  him  with  God  :  and 
his  ears  are  open  to  any  so-und  that  reminds  him  of  God; 
so  is  he  more  tenacious  of  his  opinion  in  religious  matters 
than  in  any  others . 

In  the  world  there  may  be  said  to  be  a  universal  and  a 
particular  mind.  The  particular  mind  is  that  mental  force 
which  we  imlividually  possess  ;  the  universal  mind  is  the  gen- 
eral resultant  of  all  these  differently'  acting  individual  forces. 
This  universal  mind  is  often  called  the  general  idea,  or  gen- 
eral thought.  This  general  thought  goes  onward  crushing 
beneath  its  massive  chariot  wheels  every  opposing  principle. 
Its  apparent  aim  is  the  survival  of  the  fittest.  But  the 
individual  mind  being  imperfect,  it  follows  that  the  general 
mind  can  lay  no  claim  to  infallibility.  From  its  decisions 
many  errors,  common  to  the  individual  mind,  will  of  course 
be  eliminated ;  but  unerring  judgment  it  can  never  claim. 
However,  it  pronounces  judgment  true  or  false  upon  ever}' 
important  actor,  upon  all  social  and  political  activity,  and 
upon  every  creed. 

The  Bible  as  in  the  past  so  now  is  every  where  examined 
by  the  penetrating  gaze  of  the  cold  philosopher ;  and  as 
much  more  in  the  present  than  in  the  past  as  the  means  of 
study  are  greater,  and  the  power  in  the  ecclesiastical  body 
less  effective  in  restraining  the  liberty  of  study  and  speech, 


4:  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

however  violent  and  subversive  of  man's  well-being  such 
speech  may  be.     It  is  almost  a  proverb  that  — 

"  Neque  decipitur  ratio,  nee  decipit  nunquam  — 
Reason  can  never  deceive  nor  be  deceived." 
Proverbs  are  generally  the  crystallization  of  the  painfully 
discovered  truths  of  human  experience  ;  but  we  are  given  to 
believe  that  this  proverb  at  least  has  greatly  exaggerated  the 
truth  it  was  invented  to  convey.  True  it  is  that  we  should 
accept  of  nothing  contrary  to  our  reason  ;  but  nothing  can 
be  more  certainl}'^  known  than  that  the  reason  that  is,  may 
not  be  the  reason  that  shall  be.  Our  reason  is  bounded  by 
our  intellectual  horizon ;  and  our  intellect  is  dependent  on 
our  experience: 

hyov,  rj  >f  a-£cp'.a  zu/ry^  —  Experimental  investigation  pro- 
duces science,  assaysPolus,  proper!}^  enough;  but  the  want 
of  such  investigation,  produces  chance."  (Aristotle;  Met. 
I,  1.  5).  It  is  certainly  possible  that  many  things  now  re- 
jected by  some  of  the  ablest  scientists,  ma}'^  under  the  light 
of  greater  experience  be  unanimously  accepted.  We  see 
no  reason,  therefore,  for  casting  aside  a  religious  teaching 
simply  because  some  one  man  or  school  of  men  would  advise 
us  so  to  do.  But  should  the  scientific  world  as  such,  the 
world  of  experience,  reject  a  doctrine  as  spurious,  it  cer- 
tainly would  be  a  rash  thing  in  us  to  accept  it.  Some  may 
say  with  Aristophanes : 

"  L'.r.-.p  €/T~s'.tTM  yt   a~a^  aicrtv   ours  (Soj/jj)^,  oure   ~'.(TTi^^  outc 
opxo^  //£>£;  —  Could  I  possibly  form  an  alliance  with  those 
to  whom  nothing   is  sacred,   neither  altar,  nor   faith,   nor 
ath."     CAcharnenses,  807-308). 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  thf  Principles  of  Religion.     5 

But  tlie  truth  is  that  scientilic  men,  even  when  unbe- 
lievers, are  nevertheless  most  regardful  of  those  things 
8up|)osecl  to  bind  the  breaking  heart  of  humanity  to  the 
pitiful  heart  of  God.  Says  Huxle}':  "Nothing  great  in 
science  has  ever  been  done  by  men,  whatever  their  power, 
in  whom  the  divine  afflatus  of  thetruth-seelter  was  wanting." 
(Reign  of  Queen  Victoria,  II,  332). 

A:   SCIENCE  AND    SIMPLE  THEISM: 

The  idea  of  a  God  self-existent  and  eternal  may  be  said 
to  be  the  common  possession  of  all  mankind  who  have  passed 
from  the  merely  animal  into  the  intellectual  world.  "We 
have  no  sufficient  grounds  for  asserting  that  this  idea  is 
(nnate  ;  rather  with  the  scientific  world  do  we  believe  that  it 
everywhere  comes  as  a  consequent  of  reasoning.  The  fact 
that  there  are  atheists,  and  the  further  fact  that  there  have 
been  and  are  to-day  whole  tribes  who  have  not  as  much  as 
a  name  for  God,  and  no  conception  whatever  of  the  work 
of  creation,  are  sufficient  to  refute  any  belief  in  innate 
ideas  of  deity : 

"  There  have  not  been  wanting  instances  of  eminent 
scientists  who  not  merely'  rejected  Christianity,  but  appar- 
ently did  not  even  believe  in  the  being  of  a  God."  (Prof. 
Stokes). 

"  Instead  of  its  being  true  that  ideas  of  deity  such  as  are 
entertained  by  cultivated  people,  are  innate  ;  it  is,  contrari- 
wise, true  that  they  arise  only  at  a  comparatively  advanced 
stage,  as  results  of  accumulated  knowledge,  greater  intel- 
lectual grasp,   and  higher  sentiment. A 

typical  case  is  that  of  the  Juangs,  a  wild  tril)e  of  Bengal, 


6  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

who,  '..escribed  as  having  no  word  for  God,  no  idea  of  a 
future  state,  no  religious  ceremonies,  are  said  to  have  no 
notion  of  the  worship  of  ancestors."  (Spencer:  Sociology, 
282,  411). 

"It  suffices  me  to  remark  that  perception  is  the  first 
operation  of  all  our  intellectual  faculties,  and  the  inlet  of 
all  our  knowledge  in  our  minds."  (Locke). 

''The  soul  of  man  being  therefore  at  the  first  as  a  book, 
wherein  nothing  is  and  yet  all  things  may  be  imprinted  ;  we 
are  to  search  by  what  steps  and  degrees  it  riseth  unto  per- 
fection of  knowledge."     (Hooker:     Ecc.  Polity,  I,  VI,  1). 

We,  therefore,  discard  the  doctrine  that  we  are  born  v/itb 
an  idea  of  the  deity  stamped  on  our  mind,  as  one  not 
worthy  of  credence,  because  contrary  to  experience.  We 
regard  this  doctrine  also  pernicious  in  that  it  points  to 
something  superior  to  reason,  as  the  ground-work  of  theism. 
But  although  our  mind  at  birth  is  void  of  any  idea  wliat- 
ever,  we  are  yet  obliged  to  admit  that  humanity,  under  like 
circumstances  and  conditions,  has  always  come  to  similar 
conclusions  concerning  the  fact  of  the  existence  of  a 
supreme  Being.  Certain  beliefs  appear  to  be  the  necessary 
products  of  intelligence. 

The  belief  that  every  effect  must  have  a  cause  is  neces- 
sary and  universal,  and  is  a  corollary  of  the  doctrine  of  the 
Persistence  of  Force.  That  the  doctrine  of  the  Persistence 
of  Force  is  a  necessary  truth,  we  have  the  witness  of  con- 
sciousness, since  the  annihilation  or  creation  of  force  is 
absolutely  unthinkable.  Upon  the  truth  of  tlie  doctrine  of 
the  Persistence  of  Force  depends  all  faith  in  order,  uni- 
formity, stability,  and  achievement.     But  the  doctrine  that 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Pelirpon.     7 

every  effect  must  have  a  cause,  is  no  more  a  diitnni  of  con- 
sciousness than  tlie  belief  that  the  first  cause  must  be  in 
itself  uncaused,  and  eternal, —  must  be  the  universal  and 
all-peTvading  Energy.     Says  Aristotle: 

x'.xiv^  a/.v/TiZitv  £t>ai  y.ud  au7i>,  Z'/:  rr^j  a'.il'.av  •/.I'^r^n '.•>  o-a  w.d'.ou 
xtveiffda'.  xw.  rr^v  /ji.'«>  u^'  ti"'?,  o/xuiisv  (5;  —apa  zr/^  ~i>u  ~a>ro^ 
TYjV  uz/.r^v  (popay^  ijv  xt^s'.v  <fa<LZ'>  rij>  —piurr^'j  ouaia-^  xai  a/.v^r^rov^ 
a/.hi^  (fiino.^  oorit/.-i  ra^  zwj  tJjv^t^tio./  w.'J'.ou',  «>«/'Z7J  xa'.  riiurui> 
ixanrr^v   ~u>y    (fupiov   b-'  a/.'/^r^Tno    r£   xr^i'.trOa'.    -/.iiAf  abrn   xu:  w.o'.ou 

ouffia:;  —  Sincc  it  is  necessary  that  the  thing  moved  be  moved 
by  something,  and  the  thing  first  moving  be  in  its  nature  im- 
movable, and  the  eternal  motion  be  moved  by  something 
eternal,  and  the  single  by  something  single,  —  we  see  that 
in  addition  to  the  absolute  force  of  the  whole  universe, 
which  we  say  the  first  and  immovable  being  moves,  there 
are  other  eternal  movements,  such  as  those  of  the  heavenly 
bodies ;  and  it  is  necessary  that  each  of  these  movements 
be  moved  by  some  being  in  its  nature  eternal  and  immova- 
ble."    (Met.  XI,  8,  4). 

In  scientific  investigation,  in  whatever  department  of 
thouglit  that  investigation  may  be,  when  we  attempt  to 
trace  back  effects  to  their  causes,  as  a  man  on  his  way  to  a 
distant  town  has  no  difficulty  while  on  the  highway  in  keep- 
ing the  path,  but  on  the  road  appearing  less  and  less 
traversed  and  finally  disappearing  in  a  boundless,  track- 
less desert,  shudders  at  the  thought  of  his  utter  loneliness, — 
so  we  stand  aghast  when  the  infinite  void,  the  great 
Unknown,  yawns  before  us.  Here  all  investigation  fails, 
all   hope   dies.     The   scientist   looking   with   awe   on    this 


8  Essays  on  God  and  3fan, 

boundless,  bottomless  sea,  whose  awful  waves,  rolling  in 
majestic  majesty  awake  responsive  echoes  in  his  beating 
heart ,  breathes  the  breath  of  reverential  fear.  Man  indeed 
has  been  said  to  be  the  measure  of  the  universe ;  but  sucii 
a  saying  is  poetry,  not  prose.  The  tru-tli  is  that  our  finite 
powers  will  not  permit  us  to  trace  an  effect  to  infinity. 
Nevertheless,  we  are  equally  unable  to  conceive  that  in  the 
chain  of  causes  there  is  not  One  Uncaused : 

"  Aov  5i  TO  <iv   auTi>   (lu   yi'fjt'o.'.   ooot   ifOiifizrai'.    v/.   rtvog  yap 
av  tyiy^zTo — Now,  being  itself  can  neither  be  produced  nor 
destroyed :  for  then  would  it   have  to  be  produced   from 
something."     (Aristotle:  Met.  VIII,  10,  6.) 
Force  must, therefore,  be  uncreated  and  eternal : 

"J^./a  aduyazov  xv^rjtn.'  vj  yv^eadai  >j  (fdafjTivai:  asc  yatj  r^v — . 
For  it  is  impossible  that  force  should  either  be  created  or 
destroyed:  for  it  is  eternal."        (Aristotle:  Met.  XI,  6,  1). 

It  would  appear,  therefore,  that  force  must  be  traced  to 
One  which  must  be  indivisible,  incorporeal,  immutable,  and 
intelligent : 

"  art  fj.^y  oov  zarvj  oufj'.a  rtq  a'.dui^  ■/.a.>.  axr^r^ra^  '/.n.'.  y-^'/o- 
piGixtvTj  ziov  atadriTwv  ipavspo^  —  It  is,  therefore,  evident  that 
being  is  something  eternal,  immovable,  and  separate  from 
sensuous  existence."     (Aristotle:    Met.  XI,  7,  12). 

Although,  according  to  Aristotle,  force  being  uncreated, 
the  universe  must  be  eternal ;  yet  God  in  the  highest  sense 
must  be  the  source  of  all  being,  life,  and  force: 

"  'Pap.tv  itt  Tdv  Bziiv  ev^ai  ^uxiv  aidiii>  aptfrraw^  wffTS  l^ojrj  xai 
acwv   ao-^zyr^-    y.o.'.   atdto':   vzapyet   no    deuj :    toozd    yap   6   Beoq  — 

We  say  that  God  is  a  being  eternal  and  best,  so  that  life, 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.     9 

unbroken  duration,  and  eternity  belong  to  him:  for  God  is 
this."     (Aristotle:  Met.  XI,  7,  9). 

God  or  whatever  we  may  call  the  origin  and  source  of  all 
things,  must  be  thought,  intelligence  : 

^^Apyyj    ih   r/    -^nr^rs'.^.       Ta>)Zit'j   •m>'j<;    /.a:     yor^niy  —  The     origin 

of  things  is  intelligence.  Mind  and  thought  are  the  same." 
(Aristotle:  Mot.  XI,  7,  3,  8). 

Thus,  according  to  Aristotle,  a  light  in  all  ages,  the  first 
Mover  is  God,  who  existing  as  simple  and  eternal  energy, 
acts  upon  the  universe  as  the  human  mind  acts  upon  the 
body.  Never  absent  or  on  a  journey,  God  fills  and  moves, 
and  governs  the  whole : 

*^ haOo?j)U  5i,  6~ep  ev  vr^t  ;j.sv  xuf3sf))^rjTrjq^  sv  dfi/xaz:  or  i^-/'.uyoe;^ 
ev  yiifxp  Oi  xoiiixpau)'^,  sv  ~(>?.et  Sz  vo/jlo^,  sv  (TTf)fXT()~^du}  or  ^/'£- 
/J.OJV,  rouro  dtoq  ev  xoff/xu)^  ~Xr^v  xad'  ofTov  rin-^  /jtiV  xaiiaTr^pov  to 
apys'.\>  —oXoxcvrjTov  rs  xac  ~()Xu!J.£pip.uv^  rw  ds  aXoTrov  a~ovov  re 
xai  T.aGTf^  xtyuypi(rij.t'>n'j  (7U)fiaTtx-q^  affds'^sia^ :  ev  ax'./r^ru)  yap 
idpu/izvo^  Tzavra  x;v££  xat  Ttepcaye'.^  o-au  0ou?.sra'.  xa:  ozio^. 
O'jTu)^  u-oXr^TTzziiv  xai  e~t  ttj^  iitt'^if/o:;  -iilsw^^  X.zyM  Oz  roude 
Tou    xii^'iiiw.    vi);i<>q    psv    yap    ijixiv    ((ToxXtvYj^    6   deo: — Speaking 

generally,  whatever  a  pilot  is  to  the  ship,  a  charioteer  to  the 
chariot,  a  leader  to  the  chorus,  a  commander  to  the  encamped 
army, — this  is  God  to  tlie  universe;  only,  while  to  those 
such  superintendence  is  full  of  toil,  care,  and  trouble  ;  to 
this  being  it  is  without  pain  or  labor,  and  separated  from 
every  bodily  weakness.  Founding  all  things  in  his  own 
immovable  self,  he  moves  and  conducts  it  whither  and  how 
he  wills.  Thus  must  we  believe  it  is  in  the  greater  city:  I 
mean  this  cosmos    of   ours;  for  God  is  its  wise  and  just 


10  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

(equally-inclining)  law."      (Aristotle:    De  Mundo,  VI,  34, 
36). 

Passing  from  Aristotle  into  whom  as  a  mighty  sea  ran  all 
the  rivers  of  ancient  knowledge,  and  from  whom  there  have 
arisen  through  all  the  ages,  and  still  arise,  waters  of  healing 
for  all  people,  —  we  will  enter  the  scientific  temple  of  to-day, 
ablaze  with  light,  and  ask  there  what  knowledge  may  be 
found  to  scatter  the  darkness  in  tlie  mind  of  man  on  the 
subject  of  the  knowability  of  God. 

If  there  is  something  in  man  which  we  call  mind  receiving 
through  the  afferent  nerves  constant  messages  from  the 
outer  world,  comparing  and  determining  with  a  view  to  the 
ultimate  welfare  of  the  whole  man,  we  should  have  no  diffi- 
culty in  seeing  a  similar  relation  between  the  material 
universe  and  the  Infinite  Mind  which  moves  it.  As  our 
material  frame  is  the  tabernacle  of  the  soul,  so  may  the 
whole  material  universe  be  the  tabernacle  of  God. 

"If  thinking  be  accompanied,  as  we  know  it  in  ourselves 
to  be  accompanied,  by  a  state  of  activity  of  the  material 
organism  of  which  the  body  consists,  that  does  not  prove 
that  thinking  is  nothing  more  than  an  action  of  the  material 
organism.  We  have  seen  that  life  can  only  proceed  from 
the  living;  may  it  not  be  in  a  similar  manner  that  mind  can 
only  proceed  from  that  which  has  mind?  See  what  the  con- 
trary supposition  leads  us  to.  Here  is  man,  in  a  geological 
sense  a  creature  but  of  yesterday,  utterly  incapable  of  ac- 
counting for  his  own  existeace  by  any  play  of  mere  natural 
forces,  and  yet  ignoring  the  existence  of  any  mind  higher 
than  his  own  mind,    though    ready  enough  to   admit    the 


A  Philosophical  Tiirjnir>/  info  the  Principles  of  Relirjion.     11 

existence  of  unintel]i<zcnt  l:»w,  nnd  that  without  limitations 
of  time  or  space."      (Stokes:  Effects  of  Light). 

"The  thoufjhts  and  feelings  which  constitute  conscious- 
ness and  are  ahsoluteh'  inaccessible  to  any  hut  the  possessor 
of  that  conscionsnuss,  form  an  existence  that  has  no  place 
among  the  existences  with  which  the  rest  of  the  sciences  deal. 
Mind  still  continues  to  us  a  something  without  any  kinship 
to  other  things.  -  -  -  -  No  effort  enables  us  to  as- 
similate them.  That  a  unit  of  feeling  has  nothing  in  com- 
mon with  a  unit  of  motion,  becomes  more  than  ever  manifest 
when  we  bring  the  two  into  juxtaposition."  (Spencer: 
Psychology,  vol.  I.  140,    158). 

Consciousness  is  the  basis  of  all  mental  operation,  the 
witness  of  every  motion  of  the  soul.  Without  it  all  is 
blank;  all  fulness,  vacuity;  all  life,  deatli.  "We  cannot 
question  its  veracity,  nor  deny  its  reality.  Absolute  faith 
in  conscionsness  is  the  first  and  ever  essential  element  of 
all  reasoning  whatever. 

Freedom  is  a  revelation  of  consciousness.  And  yet 
nothing  is  more  incapable  of  proof  than  human  freedom. 
We  cannot  believe  that  every  act  of  man  is  necessitated 
from  all  eternity ;  but  we  are  equally  unable  to  give  any 
sufficient  reason  for  believing  that  man  can  accomplish 
some  effect  disconnected  from  the  Infinite  Cause.  Thus 
arc  we  shut  up  in  our  narrow  circle,  outside  of  which  all 
is  imponetrab'.i'  darkness.  We  are  unable  to  disbelieve 
that  we  can  work  witli  an  cntl  in  view.  If  these  revela- 
tions of  consciousness  be  true,  we  have  a  power  superior  to, 
and  independent  of,  matter,  —  an  intelligent,  living,  free 
energy.     With  the   truth  of  consciousness,  design  and  lib- 


12  Essays  on  God  aitd  Man., 

erty  become  facts  ;  but  these  same  facts  eoukl  not  exist 
independent  of  a  free,  immutable,  eternal,  infinite,  and  de- 
signing God.  He  who  denies  God,  deprives  himself  of  the 
only  possible  basis  of  explaining  mental  phenomena ;  he 
who  affirms  God,  as  an  eternal,  persistent,  free,  and  intelli- 
gent force,  has  in  that  affirmation  the  key  which  unlocks 
the  secrets  of  mind  and  matter : 

"  Hence  the  force  of  which  we  assert  persistence  is  that 
Absolute  Force  of  which  we  are  individually  conscious  as 
the  necessary  correlate  of  the  force  we  know.  By  the  per- 
sistence of  force  we  really  mean  the  persistence  of  some 
Cause  which  transcends  our  knowledge  and  conception.  In 
asserting  it  we  assert  an  unconditioned  Reality  without  be- 
ginning or  end."  (Spencer:  First  Principles,  62). 
This  I  consider  sound  theism,  and  a  truly  religious  assertion. 
It  is  equivalent  to  saying  tliot  we  know  God  only  as  through 
a  glass  darkl^'.  The  science  of  the  present  age,  whatever 
we  may  think  of  it  as  being  Christian  or  anti-Christian,  is 
at  least  profoundly  theistic.  Evolution  is  not  atheism,  but 
the  recognition  of  an  unseen,  all-powerful,  immutable,  and 
intelligent  Force  bringing  out  of  the  unknown  the  known, 
out  of  the  homogeneous  the  heterogeneous,  out  of  the  undif- 
ferentiated the  differentiated,  working  in  matter  and  mind 
and  adapting  things  to  their  environments.  Some  atheistic 
scientists  there  undoubtedly  are,  and  always  have  been;  but 
the  great  body  of  scientific  thinkers,  even  of  evolutionists, 
are  deeply  religious.  It  is  true  they  do  not  pretend  to  have 
measured  the  depths  of  the  Infinite  One.  nor  to  liave  expe- 
rienced the  woes  of  hell,  nor  the  joys  of  heaven  ;  but  we  may 
be  sure  that  he  who  professes  to  know  the  most  of  God,  is  he 


A  Philosophical  In'/niry  info  tha  Prinriples  of  Relifjion.    13 

that  really  knows  the  least.      Concerning  our  knowledge  of 
the  Deity  it  is  very  truly  said  in  the  Vedas: 

"  He  by  whom  it  is  not  thought,  l^y  him  it  is  thought;  he 
by  whom  it  is  thought,  knows  it  not.  It  is  not  understood 
by  those  who  understand  it;  it  is  understood  by  those  who 
understand  it  not."  (Sacred  Books  of  the  East:  Talava- 
kara-Upanishad). 

]\Ir.  Wallace,  one  of  the  founders  of  the  evolution  school, 
in  speaking  of  force  in  general,  says : 

"  It  does  not  seem  improbable  that  all  force  may  be  will 
force :  and  thus  that  the   whole    universe  is  not  merely  de- 
pendent on  but  actuall}'  is  the  will  of  higher  intelligences  or 
of  One  Supreme  Intelligence." 
%  The  German  botanist,  Alex.  Braun,  says: 

"  Some  say  that  the  descent  theory  denies  creation.  But 
this  contrast  does  not  actually  exist ;  for  as  soon  as  we  look 
upon  creation  as  a  divine  effect,  not  merely  belonging  to  the 
past  or  api)earing  in  single  abrupt  movements,  but  connected 
and  universally  present  in  time,  we  can  seek  and  find  it  no- 
where else  but  in  the  natural  history  of  development  itself." 
Wigand,  von  Baur,  and  Braubach,  also  declare  that  evolu- 
tion is  theistic.  At  the  fifty-sixth  annual  meeting  of  the 
British  Association  of  scientists,  held  in  Birmingham  the 
past  summer,  Prof.  Crookes,  as  President  of  the  Chemical 
Section,  said: 

"  This  buildmg  up  of  evolution  is  above  all  not  fortuit- 
ous: the  variation  and  development  which  we  recognise  in 
the  universe  run  along  certain  fixed  lines  which  have  been 
preconceived  and  foreordained.  To  the  careless  and  hasty 
eye  design  and  evolution  seem  antagonistic  ;  the  more  care- 


14  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

ful  observer  sees  that  evolution,  steadily  proceeding  along 
an  ascending  scale  of  excellence,  is  the  strongest  argument 
in  favor  of  a  preconceived  plan."  (Nature:  No.  879,  p. 
424). 

However  broad  ami  anti-dogmatic  the  present  age  of 
scientists  may  be,  we  doubt  not  that  as  a  body  they  would 
subscribe  to  these  words  of  Aristotle : 

'•A'j:  -£o'.;/£t  TO  Os'.iiy  rrjv  uArjv  tpud :j  —  The  Divine  Being 
comprises  the  whole  of  nature."     (Met.  XI,  8,  19). 

The  outer  world  of  mi  ad  and  matter  bespeaks  to  every 
intelligent  mind  an  Infinite  Power,  hidden,  inscrutable, 
incomprehensible,  and  eternally  existing  as  the  true  subject 
of  nature.  Indeed  the  whole  awful  universe  appears  but  as 
a  garment  which  the  still  more  awful  Deity  has  spun,  with 
unseen  fibres,  for  a  garment  to  hide  his  terrible  majesty 
and  unspeakable  glory  from  the  gaze  of  his  creatures.  But 
however  great  the  proof  of  God's  existence  in  the  outer 
world,  we  have  in  the  inner  world,  our  own  consciousness, 
such  proof  as  cannot  be  questioned  without  suicide.  Refer- 
ring to  this,  Spencer  says  : 

"  Grant  that  among  all  races  who  have  passed  a  certain 
stage  of  intellectual  development,  there  are  certain  vague 
notions  concerning  the  origin  ts-.id  hidden  nature  of  things, 
and  there  arises  the  inference  that  such  notions  are  the  nec- 
essary product  of  progressing  intelligence.  The  endless 
variety  serves  but  to  strengthen  the  conclusion,  showing 
how  in  different  places  and  times,  like  conditions  have  led 
to  similar  trains  of  thought  ending  in  analogous  results. 
That  these  countless  different  and  yet  allied  i)henomena 
presented  by  all  religions  are  accidental  or  factitious,  is  an 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   15 

untenable  supposition.  A  candid  examination  of  the  evi- 
dence quite  negatives  the  doctrine  that  creeds  are  priestly 
inventions  ******  Xn  unbiassed  considera- 
tion of  its  general  aspects  forces  us  to  conclude  that  relig- 
ion, everywhere  present  as  the  weft  running  through  the 
warp  of  human  history,  expresses  some  eternal  fact  *  *  *  * 
Though  the  Absolute  cannot  in  any  manner  or  degree  be 
known,  yet  we  find  that  its  positive  existence  is  a  necessary 
datum  of  consciousness ;  that  so  long  as  consciousness  con- 
tinues, we  cannot  for  a  moment  rid  it  of  this  datum  ;  and 
that  thus  this  belief  which  this  datum  constitutes,  has  a 
higher  warrant  than  any  other  whatever. "  (First  Princi- 
ples: pp.  13,  14,  98). 

This  consciousness  of  a  Power  all  around  and  within  us 
explains  the  searching  after  God  which  the  peasant  as  well 
as  the  philosopher  manifests.  It  explains  the  beating  heart, 
the  up-turned  eye,  the  imploring  look,  the  penitent  breast, 
and  the  hope  surviving  the  funeral  fire.  Of  God  the  Abso- 
lute, the  First  Cause,  we  must  in  the  deepest  sense,  remain 
forever  in  ignorance,  except  so  far  as  we  are  made  aware  of 
that  Presence  by  the  conscious  but  indefinable  pressure  of 
that  Universal  Energy.  We  shall  be  then  conscious  not 
truly  of  that  Cause  itself,  but  of  its  reflected  image.  Thus 
may  we  judge  of  the  nature  of  that  First  Cause  by  the 
waves  of  this  Infinite  Energy  that  roll  over  us.  As  it  is 
beautifully  expressed  in  the  Vedas: 

"  His  form  cannot  be  seen,  no  one  perceives  him  with  the 
eye.  Those  who  through  the  heart  know  him  thus  abiding 
in  the  heart,  become  immoital."     (SvetasvataraUpanishad), 

The   unknowability    of   God  is  asserted  not  only  by  all 


16  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

learned  philosophers,  but  also  by  the  foremost  theologians 
of  every  age : 

*' There  is  but  one  thing  man  can  be  assured  of  regarding 
God's  nature,  to  know  and  perceive  that  nothing  can  be 
revealed  in  human  language  concerning  God."     ( Arnobius). 

"  God  is  incomprehensible,  and  incapable  of  being  meas- 
ured ;  cannot  be  grasped  by  the  power  of  any  human  under- 
standing, even  the  purest  and  brightest."     (Origen). 

"  The  e3'e  cannot  see  him,  tliough  he  is  spiritually  visible. 
He  is  incomprehensible,  though  in  grace  he  is  manifested. 
He  is  beyond  our  utmost  thought."     (TertuUian :  Apology). 

"Our  soundest  knowledge  is  to  know  that  we  know  him 
not  as  indeed  he  is,  neither  can  know  him ;  and  our  safest 
eloquence  concerning  him  is  our  silence  when  we  confess 
without  confession  that  his  glory  is  ineffable,  his  greatness 
above  our  capacity  and  reach."  (Hooker;  Eccles.  Ponty. 
vol.  I,  cap.  2). 

''Man,"  says  Protagoras,  "is  the  measure  of  all  things— 
metron  panton ;  "  but  the  thoughtful  soul  is  almost  para- 
lyzed when  it  attempts  to  think  of  God.  The  basis  of  all 
human  thought  is  comparison,  or  relation.  Even  our  whole 
being  Is  but  the  complex  result  of  myriad  forces  which  ne- 
cessarily tend  to  produce  internal  psychical  and  physical 
relations  corresponding  to  external  relations.  Although  all 
definite  conceptions  of  God  are  thus  impossible  from  the 
very  law  of  our  being ;  yet  there  does  appear  a  dark  back- 
ground in  the  mind  of  every  man,  upon  which  is  faintly 
traced  the  form  of  a  Power  not  conditioned  as  we  on  time 
and  space ;  and  from  this  ever  present  mysterious  Form 
existing  in  the  realms  of  our  shadowy  thought,  there  appear 


A  Philosopkkal  Inqninj  into  the  Principles  of  lieliyion.    17 

to  arise  sounds  alike  unintelligible  and  obscure.  Groping 
after  we  know  not  what,  we  nevertheless  continue  to  grope  ; 
deceived  and  deceiving,  not  having  the  substance  we  feast 
on  its  shadow.  But  we  are  acquainted  with  intelligence  as 
manifested  by  ourselves,  and  have  every  reason  to  believe 
that  we  are  only  one  form  of  that  Infinite  Intelligence  man- 
ifesting itself  in  every  grade  of  being  from  the  infinitely  lit- 
tle to  the  inlinitely  great.  We  follow  the  series  in  the 
ascending  scale  until  the  blaze  of  intellectual  light  blinds 
our  vision ;  here  our  knowledge  ends.  But  because  we  can- 
not pass  the  gulf,  shall  we  say  there  is  no  territory  beyond? 
Is  it  not  more  reasonable  to  imagine  at  the  end  of  that  infi- 
nite series  the  unknown  source  of  all  life,  the  fountain  of 
ail  virtue,  the  Great  Unknowable,  the  Creator  and  Upholder 
of  the  universe.  Truly  may  we  say  that  although  we  know 
Him  not,  yet  must  we  believe  in  Him ;  and  altliough  we  see 
Him  not,  yet  by  the  law  of  our  very  being  are  we  forced  to 
discuss  Him  who  ever  revealing  himself,  remains  forever 
unrevealed  ;  ever  making  himself  known,  still  continues  to 
be  the  One  forever  Unknown.  Before  Him,  as  the  Infi- 
nite Father,  the  universe  bows  down.  Truly  is  He  the  ori- 
gin, end,  and  middle  of  all  things,  ruling  and  filling  the 
whole : 

-tn'.-r.opwotitvo:;  —  God,  as  the  saying  is  of  old,  being  the 
origin,  end,  and  middle  of  all  existences,  accomplishes  in 
perfection  his  work,  naturally  encompassing  the  whole." 
(Plato:  Leges,  IV,  716,  1). 

As  the  explanation  of  existence,  of  every  movement  men- 

2 


18  Essays  on  God  and  31aii, 

tal  and  physical,  as  the  soul  and  guiding  power  of  the 
universe,  God  remains  forever  the  necessary  postulate: 

"  To  ds  !^rjTou/ie>ov  tout''  £(TT'.,  Ttq  vj  t)j?  xvy/^fTsu)^  ^P'/S^  -'  "'} 
4'U'/r^.  Jr^^.ov  dfj^  waizzp  £w  tio  oAio  Sso^,  /.ac  -av  exitvw.  Il'.>£i 
yap  roit  ~o.'^Ta  to  z'j  yjixiv  Oeiov.  Aoyoo  (T  «/'/vj  oo  /.nya-  a/./.'/. 
Ti   y.jJi'.TToy,       Ti   oov   ay  y.pttTTov   xai  e-'.<rTr^ij.ri^  ec-ot  rJ.r^j  Bioz  — 

The  thing  in  question  is,  what  is  the  origin  of  reascjn  in  the 
soul.  It  is  evident  that,  as  in  everything  else,  this  is  wholly 
to  be  found  in  God.  For  the  divine  nature  in  some  manner 
or  other,  acts  upon  and  moves  the  whole  within  us.  The 
origin  of  reason  is  not  reason,  but  something  stronger. 
And  what  should  I  say  is  stronger  than  intelligence  except 
God?"  (Aristotle:  Eud.  Eth.  VII,  14,  19). 

Such  is  not  the  language  of  Aristotle  only,  nor  of  the 
Greeks ;  but  of  all  philosophers  of  whatever  nation  or 
tongue.  Truly  the  "  indwelling  Deity  moves  in  some  man- 
ner or  other  all  things."  The  signs  of  such  an  indwelling 
Deity  are  on  every  hand,  the  marks  of  intelligence  bespeak 
an  Immanent  Thought  throughout  the  infinite  cosmos: 

"  Were  we  compelled  to  choose  between  two  alternatives 
of  translating  mental  phenomena  into  physical  or  of  trans- 
lating physical  phenomena  into  mental ;  the  latter  alternative 
would  seem  the  more  acceptable  of  the  two." 

(Spencer:     Psychology,  vol,  I,  page  159) 

Seeing  thus  clearly  what  the  mind  of  the  scientific  world 
really  is,  we  are  forced  to  acknowledge  it  not  only  theistic 
but  truly  religious.  It  should  never  be  foigotten  that  a  man 
may  be  truly  religious  though  tossed  on  raging  seas  of  doubt 
and  fear.  If  it  can  be  said  of  the  agnostic,  or  skeptic,  that 
he  confesses  too  little;   it  may  with  equal  i)io[)riety  he  sail 


^  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   19 

of  him  who  is  heard  to  speak  so  positively  in  religious  mat- 
ters, that  he  confesses  too  much  : 

*' There  is  more  faith  in  lioncst  doubt 
Believe  me  than  in  half  the  creeds." 

Let  us  be  glad  that  the  discoveries  of  modern  science,  all 
the  impressions  of  the  outer  on  tlie  inner  world,  all  the  in- 
terpretations by  the  inner  world  of  self  and  not-self,  all 
mental  investigations  whatever,  but  bind  the  human  heart, 
already  firmly  bound,  still  more  firmly  to  the  heart  of  God. 

"  So  runs  m}'  dream:   but  what  am  I ; 
An  infant  crying  in  the  night: 
An  infant  crying  for  the  light : 
And  with  no  language  but  a  cry. 
I  falter  where  I  firmly  trod, 
And  falling  with  my  weight  of  cares 
Upon  the  great  world's  altar  stairs 
That  slopes  through  darkness  up  to  God, 
I  stretch  lame  hands  of  faith  and  grope, 
And  gather  dust  and  chaff,  and  call 
To  what  I  feel  is  Lord  of  all, 
And  faintly  trust  the  larger  hope." 

(Tennyson). 

B:     SCIENCE  AND  NATURAL  RELIGION. 

Natural  religion  is  the  broadest  of  all  forms  of  tlicistic 
worship  ;  yet  it  is  much  narrower  than  sim[)le  theism.  The 
consensus  of  scientific  thought  is,  therefore,  not  so  over- 
whelming in  its  favor,  as  in  tlie  case  of  mere  theism.  Theism 
is  the  expression  of  tlie  fact  of  God's  existence;  religion  is 


20   '  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

the  expression  of  this  and  much  more :  it  is  the  expression 
of  the  relation,  founded  on  tliis  fact,  between  the  Infinite 
and  the  finite,  as  that  of  a  father  to  the  child.  Here  the 
nature  of  the  one  is  to  confess  disobedience,  acknowledge 
dependence,  and  expect  forgiveness  and  aid ;  and  that  of 
the  other  is  to  pity  and  forgive,  strengthen  and  aid.  The 
idea  of  this  relation  we  see  quite  well  manifested  by 
Anchises : 

"  At  pater  Anchises  oculos  ad  sidera  laetus 
Extulit,  et  caelo  palmas  cum  voce  tetendit : 
'  Juppiter  omnipotens,  precibus  si  flecteris  ullis, 
Aspics  nos ;  hoc  tantum,  et  si'  pietate  meremur. 
Da  deinde  auxilium  pater,  atque  haec  omina  firma'  — 
Joyfull}'    did     father,    Anchises,    raise    his    eyes    to    the 
heavens,  and  stretching   out  his  hands  said :      '  O  Juppiter 
omnipotent,  if  ever  thou  art  moved    by  prayer,  behold  us 
now ;   in  this  our  great  need,  if  we  are  worthy  of  any  pity, 
lend  us  thine  aid,  O  father,  and  confirm  the  omens  ' !" 

(Virgil:  ^neid,  II,  686-). 

In  Homer  also  we  find  set  forth  the  care  for  men  on  the 
part  of  the  Olympian  gods : 

"  Zsu^  5'  a'jzo^  Vz/xsc  (V,y?ov  OXuij-io^  u>d/)co-<)t(nVj  eadhnq  rj03 
y.a/.o'.^f^,  I'l-u)^  sdz?.r^qty,  ixatrruj — From  high  heaven  does 
Zeus  himself  assign  to  men  both  good  and  bad  their  fate, 
and  as  he  wills  to  each."  (Odyssey,  VI,  187-). 

Not  less  by  Plato  is  God  represented  as  the  rewarder  of 
good  and  the  avenger  of  evil  works : 

•'/"w  ij'  azi  ^u>s~tzat   di/.r^  zorj   a~<)Xzi~nij.t'^u)v  too   ffaiou   vniwu 

xai  xt/.n(j!irj;ivM)<i — And  Justice,  as  his  consort,  follows  as  an 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.  21 

avenger  on  the  heels  of  him  who  forsakes  the  divine  law ; 
while  he  who  wishes  to  be  happy,  adhering  to  her,  follows 
after  her  in  humble  confidence."   (Plato:  Leges:  IV,  716-). 

Still  more  beautifully  and  fully  do  we  find  the  fatherhood 
of  God  taught  in  the  Vedus: 

"  O  Being  inconceivable!  I  luiml)ly  crave  thy  forgiveness. 
Thou  art  the  father  of  all  things  animate  and  inanimate ; 
thou  art  the  sage  instructor  of  the  wliole,  worthy  to  be 
adored  ;  There  is  none  like  unto  thee.  Wherefore  I  bow 
down ;  and  with  m}'  body  prostrate  upon  the  ground  crave 
thy  mercy,  Lord !  worthy  to  be  adored  ;  for  thou  shouldst 
bear  with  me,  even  as  a  father  with  his  son,  a  friend  with 
his  friend,  a  lover  with  his  beloved.  Have  mercy,  then  O 
heavenly  Lord !  O  mansion  of  the  universe  !  and  show  me 
thy  celestial  form.  I  wish  to  behold  thee  with  the  diadem 
on  thy  head,  O  God,  image  of  the  universe  !" 

(Dialogues  of  Kreeshna  and  Arjoon). 

How  l)eautif ul  this  prayer,  how  general ;  in  all  my 
theistic  studies  I  have  found  no  principles  more  agreeable  to 
m}'  nature,  more  generally  acceptable,  or  more  ennobling 
than  those  of  the  Vedas.  If  ever  God  gave  humanity  a  rev- 
elation higher  than  nature  gives  us,  I  know  not  on  what 
ground  their  inspired  character  can  be  denied.  It  is  cer- 
tainly a  groundless  supposition  that  the  inspiration  of  the 
Christian  Scriptures  necessitates  the  non-inspired  character  of 
the  sacred  writings  of  non-Christian  people  ;  I  can  accept  the 
Christian  revelation  on  the  grounds  of  evolution  ;  but  when 
one  insists  that  it  is  the  only  revelation  of  the  will  of  God  to 
His  creatures,  I  must  admit  that  I  find  it  utterly  impossible 
to  reconcile  such  belief  with  the  declared  ijjoodness  and  uni- 


22  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

versal  fatherhood  of  God.  Upon  the  Brahmin  and  Christian 
alike  fall  the  dews  of  heaven ;  seed-time  and  harvest, 
summer  and  winter,  come  in  due  time  to  all ;  so  likewise  lias 
the  God  of  nature  never  failed  to  pour  out  upon  all  flesh 
"without  respect  of  persons  those  higher  spiritual  blessings 
at  such  time  and  in  such  manner  as  is  most  conducive  to 
their  respective  welfare.  Natural  religion,  however,  admits 
no  miracles,  recognizes  no  particular  revelation,  rejects  the 
doctrine  of  the  Fall,  and  considers  the  doctrine  of  blood- 
atonement,  as  taught  by  orthodox  Christians,  as  both  unjust 
and  blasphemous.  On  the  other  hand,  while  natural  religion 
discards  the  peculiar  principles  of  all  religious  systems ;  it 
would  have  men  receive  those  principles  common  to  them 
all,  as  the  highest  knowledge  of  the  human  soul  concerning 
its  God.  Among  the  religious  principles  common  to  all 
sj'stems  of  theology,  we  find  set  forth  faith  in  God  as  the 
creator  and  upholder  of  all  things  ;  faith  in  the  fatherhood 
of  God  ;  faith  in  prayer  as  a  natural  and  reasonable  thing ; 
faith  in  a  future  life  where  ev^ery  man  shall  be  rewarded  ac- 
cording to  his  works. 

However  broad  and  few  the  dogmatic  teachings,  there 
nevertheless  can  be  no  religious  worship  without  agreement 
as  to  the  essentials  which  constitute  it,  and  as  to  the 
form  of  expressing  it.  In  order  to  religious  worship 
of  any  kind,  when  i)ublicly  conducted,  there  must  be 
on  the  part  of  each  a  willingness  to  relinquish,  or  even 
sacrifice,  for  the  welfare  of  the  whole,  many  things  de- 
sirable to  the  individual.  This  is  not  such  a  privation  as 
it  ai)pears  to  1)6  on  the  surface.  Our  idiosyncrasies  are 
comparatively  few;  while  the  i)rinciples  we  have  in  common 


A  Philosophicdl    IiKjvini  ihto  (he  Prhiciples  of  Jieh'(/ion.   23 

with  tlio  lost  of  maiikinil,  are  very  many.  If  to  surrender  a 
private  opinion  is  a  pain,  it  is  more  than  compensated  for  by 
the  advantages  received  from  united  action.  None  should 
be  ignorant  of  the  fact  that  the  welfare  of  the  race,  though 
less  aimed  at,  is  more  to  be  desired  tiiau  that  of  the  in- 
dividual. The  race  as  a  generic  man  cannot  live  without  a 
soul,  whicli  is  but  another  expression  for  the  trend  of  the 
epoch  produced  by  the  merging  of  the  individual  tliought 
into  the  general  or  social  thought.  The  sanction  for  the  re- 
linquishment of  personal  views,  and  tlie  merging  of  private 
desires  into  social  desires,  of  private  judgment  into  general 
judgment,  is  found  in  the  well  grounded  liclief  that  the 
social  and  general  judgment,  when  executed,  is  more  pro- 
ductive of  even  i  idividnal  good;  and,  since  the  end  of 
human  activit}''  is  the  perfection  of  the  race,  more  in  accord- 
ance with  the  laws  of  our  nature. 

Aristotle  considered  religion  so  necessary  to  the  welfare 
of  man,  and,  therefore,  of  the  state,  that  he  taught  that 
none  but  the  highest  intellects  gathered  from  the  best  soci- 
ety, should  be  permitted  to  perform  the  priestly  function ; 
that  they  should  receive  a  liberal  compensation  from  the 
public  treasury;  that  their  work  and  duties  should  be  super- 
vised l)y  the  state ;  that  their  office  should  be  held  in 
great  honor  ;  and  that  they  should  be  highly  respected  by 
all: 

A).r  a-o  rr;>>-  xn'.-jri<}  tTrta^,^  tyyon'.  rr/./  rv///v  .  .  .  OoTt  yap 
y-iopyo.!  <)UT£  j3a>au(Tt)v  Itpta  vji-riinrdzziv^ :  ''-o  yap  -oh-wj 
-p--si  rtrxatrOat  rou'i  9t<>o^^  —  Another  kind  of  public  charge, 
is  that  relating  to  God,  such  as  the  priesthood.     These  must 


24  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

be  paid  out  of  the  public  treasury.  Tlie  priesthood  must 
not  be  taken  from  the  lower  orders  of  society ;  for  it  is 
proper  that  God  should  be  held  in  honor  by  the  citizens." 

(Republic,  VI,  8,  18  ;  YII,  9,  9). 

Accepting  the  principles  of  natural  religion,  the  conditions 
of  man's  well-being  may  in  brief  be  said  to  be  fulfilled  by 
living  a  virtuous  life.     In  the  words  of  Madame  de  Stael  = 

"  Soyez  vertueux,  so3'^ez  croyants,  soyez  libres,  respectez 
ce  que  vous  aimez,  cherchez  I'immortalite  dans  I'amour  et 
la  divinite  dans  la  nature  ;  enfin  sanctifiez  votre  ame  comme 
un  temple,  et  I'ange  des  nobles  pensees  ne  dedaignera 
pas  d'y  apparaitre — Be  virtuous,  be  thoughtful,  be  liberal? 
respect  that  which  j-ou  love,  strive  for  immortality  in  the 
love  and  the  divinity  of  nature ;  finally  consecrate  your  soul 
as  a  temple,  and  the  angel  of  noble  thoughts  will  not  think 
it  beneath  him  to  appear  to  you." 

The  character  in  which  God  delights  is  beautifully  por- 
trayed in  the  Vedas . 

"  He  m}^  servant  is  dear  unto  me,  who  is  free  from  enmity, 
the  friend  of  all  nature,  merciful,  exempt  from  pride  and 
selfishness,  the  same  in  pleasure  and  pain,  patient  of  wrongs, 
contented,  conetantly  devout,  of  subdued  passions,  and 
firm  resolves,  and  whose  mind  and  understanding  are  fixed 
on  me."  (Dialogues  of  Krecshna  and  Arjoon). 

"Whoever  lives  according  to  his  opportunities,  always 
seeking  to  know  his  duty  and  to  discharge  the  same,  con- 
scious that  God  brings  him  to  judgment  for  every  thought 
and  act,  whatever  be  his  creed  or  faith,  he  undoubtedly  is 
the  child  of  God,  and  heir  of  wliatever  blessings  the  infinite 
Father  may  have  in  store  for  the  children  of  men.     Surely 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.  25 

such  a  child  of  God  was  Spinoza  who  uttered  that  sublime 
and  evident  trutli : 

"  Quidquid  est  in  Deo  est,  et  nihil  sine  Deo  neque  esse 
neque  concipi  potest  —  AVhatever exists,  exists  in  God;  and 
nothing  can  exist  nor  be  conceived  apart  from  God." 

The  vaUie  of  religion  to  man's  progress  is  very  properly 
stated  by  one  of  the  foremost  writers  of  the  age,  in  these 
words : 

"  There  is  hidden  in  every  one  of  the  sacred  books  some- 
thing that  can  lift  up  the  human  heart  from  the  earth  to  a 
hio'her  world,  something  that  can  make  man  feel  the  omni- 
presence of  a  higher  Power,  something  that  can  make  him 
shrink  from  evil  and  incline  to  the  good,  something  to  sus- 
tain him  in  the  short  journey  through  life,  with  its  bright 
moments  of  happiness  and  its  long  hours  of  terrible  dis- 
tress.' (Sacred  Books  of  the   East:  vol.  I,  intro.). 

The  many  activities  called  forth  by  the  needs  of  life  lead 
to  great  bodily  waste.  Hunger  and  weariness  are  but  the 
call  of  nature  for  a  new  supply  of  energy.  None  of  us 
would  dare  distrust  this  natural  call,  or  act  as  if  it  had  given 
us  a  false  warning.  It  is  hard  to  believe  that  the  call  of 
the  weary,  exhausted,  sin-stricken,  fainting  soul  to  its 
God,  is  any  less  a  natural  cry. 

AVhatever  be  the  origin  of  the  longings  in  man  after  God 
and  immortalit}^  one  thing  is  certain,  their  universal  preva- 
lence, continuance,  and  growth  have  led  all  nations  to 
regard  the  establishment  of  religious  institutions  as  necessary 
to  the  well-being  of  the  state.  This  is  asserted  by  Aris- 
totle ; 


26  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

/Aiuffiv     Upare  tav      .      .  Ta     iiz-j     iiuy     =-t>Y'^    zaur     tanv    wv 

Ss'.Tat  Tzaffa  -oA^-  ws"  et-^r^  —  As  the  fifth  in  order  but  first  in 
importance,  we  mention  the  divine  service,  which  is  called 
the  priestly.  These  things  are,  therefore,  so  to  speak,  the 
necessaries  for  tlie  well-being  of  ever}-  state." 

(Republic,  VII,  8,  7,  8.) 

Temple,  priest  and  altar  have  ever  had  a  magic  power 
over  the  hearts  of  men ;  and  although  this  power  lias  fre- 
quently been  used  for  evil,  we  must  believe  that  it  has  more 
frequently  been  used  for  good.  Often  has  the  priesthood 
yielded  unholy  service  to  the  state,  that  their  own  order 
might  be  advanced  and  their  pride  and  lust  satiated.  No 
priest  has  ever  given  greater  proof  of  this  than  he  serving  at 
Christian  altars.  By  threats,  by  violence,  by  bribery,  by 
plot  and  cunning,  have  priests  ever  gleaned  in  the  field  of 
power : 

"  As  the  new  religion  grew  to  political  power,  zealous  leg- 
islators were  eager  to  promote  its  ascendancy  by  the  means 
of  political  sanctions.  Pagans,  Jews,  heretics,  apostates, 
protestants,  papists,  were  successively  frowned  upon  by  the 
legislator,  and  for  a  long  season  subjected  to  incapacities 
and  disabilities  as  great  as,  or  greater  than,  those  which 
weighed  upon   infamies." 

(Post's  Gains'  Commentaries:   127). 

"  Puritanism  was  itself  a  grinding  social  tyranny  that 
wrought  out  its  ends  by  unscrupulous  detraction,  and  by 
the  bundling  of  things  which  should  have  been  sacred  even 
to  the  fanatic,  if  he  really  believed  in  the  cause  for  which  he 
raged."       (Slubbs:  Constitutional  His.  of  Eng.,  Ill,  G18). 

And  yet  the  believer  in  natural  religion  will  not  raze  the 


A  Philosophicul  IiKjuin/  into  the  Principles  of  Itdifjion.  27 

temple,  nor  will  he  kill  the  priest,  nor  will  he  cease  to  wor- 
ship ;  rather  will  he  patiently  work  for  the  elevation  of  the 
race  until  virtue  shall  cover  the  earth  as  the  waters  cover 
the  great  deep.  Not  even  the  agnostic  expresses  any  hope 
or  desire  that  the  religious  observances  prevailing  among  the 
different  people  of  the  world,  pass  away.  Among  them  no 
greater  autliority  than  vSpencer  can  be  adduced,  who,  in 
speaking  of  this,  makes  use  of  the  following  language  : 

"Though  with  the  transition  from  dogmatic  theism  to 
agnosticism,  all  observances  implying  the  thought  of  pro- 
pitiation may  be  expected  to  lapse,  yet  it  does  not  follow 
that  there  will  lapse  all  observances  tending  to  keep  alive 
a  consciousness  of  the  relation  in  which  we  stand  to  the 
Unknown  Cause,  and  tending  to  give  expression  to  the  sen- 
timent accompanying  that  consciousness.  There  will  remain 
a  need  for  qualifying  that  too  prosaic  and  material  form  of 
life  which  tends  to  result  from  absorption  in  daily  work ; 
and  there  will  ever  be  a  sphere  for  those  who  are  able  to 
impress  their  hearers  with  a  due  sense  of  the  mystery  in 
which  the  origin  and  moaning  of  the  univcise  are  slirou<led. 
.  .  .  Preaching  tends  more  and  more  to  assume  an  ethical 
character.  Dogmatic  theology  with  its  promises  of  reward 
and  threats  of  damnation,  bears  a  diminishing  ratio  to  the 
insistences  of  justice,  honest}',  kindness  and  sincerit3\" 
(Eccles.  Institutions,  sections  653,  Go5). 

I  cannot  but  admire  such  men  as  Spinoza,  Fichte,  Schel- 
ling,  IIei;eI,  Jacobi,  Schleiermacher,  Strauss,  Renan, 
Schoi)enhauer,  Mill,  Carlysle,  Darwin,  Bain,  Spencer,  and 
Emerson.  They  are  great  souls  illuminated  by  that  Univer- 
eal  Light  and  raised  up  by  that  Universal  Power  to  rescue 


28  Essays  on   God  and  Man, 

man  from  bigotry  and  t3Tauny  and  to  raise  him  to  the 
dignity  of  a  being  in  whom  is  the  breath  of  the  Almighty. 
If  the  rule  for  correct  living,  given  by  Marcus  Aurelius, — 

"  Reverence  the  Gods  and  help  men," — • 
is  the  essence  of  all  true  religion,  and  it  is,  then  is  it  pos- 
sessed by  most  of  these  great  men  in  its  depths  and  purity. 
It  is  not  creed  but  virtue  that  saves  the  soul ;  and  whatever 
may  be  a  man's  profession,  of  one  tiling  we  ma}^  be  sure, 
only  the  virtuous  man  is  loved  of  God.  Such  a  man  is  the 
peculiar  care  of  God,  and  whatever  happens  to  him.  sick- 
ness or  health,  poverty  or  riches,  life  or  death,  it  is  all  for 
his  real  good.  Well  has  the  divine  Plato  told  us  that  the 
soul  whose  heart  beats  after  virtue,  whose  mind  seeks  more 
and  more  to  be  likened  after  God  in  virtue  and  true  holi- 
ness, can  never  be  forgotten  by  tlie  Infinite  Father: 

"7w  dz  Oz<)(pt/.zt  (ti>^  6rj.oX(jyrj(jOfj.s,i,  6f>a  y-  "■'**  QzM'I  y.y.'STat, 
-(jyza  yi'ptaOru  a*?  owj  T£  apKrra^  ei  [j.-q  rt  avayxa'.ov  auru) 
y.fr/.ir^  £/.  -fioztpa^  u.ij.apria'i  v—rij/yz  ;  Ourujg  apa  u-n/.r^-ziov 
~tpi  TOO  S'./.acii'j  U'^opO'^j  Z(VJ  T  cv  ~v^ui  Y'.y^riTat  Z'u  z  sv 
voffot?  7j  r;v£  a?J.aj  nov  doxou'^rcuv  y.axuj'^j  toe  rnoraj  raura  st? 
ayaOov  rt  rsX.zOTrjfTSi  Cwyn  tj  a-oOoyir^rt.  0>j  yap  S-q  or.o  ye 
0B(uv  -art  aiitXzira'.  09  «^  ~poOoiizi(70a>.  eOzlr^  ij'./.aco^  yiynciOtu  xai 
£7rtT7joryw>  apzrr^^  ££9  orro'^  Sw/aro'^  wjOpiuzto  upjnounOa'.  0:at  — • 
Then  shall  we  not  admit  that  whatever  happens  from  God  to 
the  god-loving  man,  ha[)pens  in  such  a  way  as  to  bring  about 
his  highest  good,  unless  he  suffer  the  effects  of  some  evil 
resulting  from  past  sin?  Thus  must  we  believe  concerning 
the  just  man  that,  whether  afflicted  with  poverty,  disease, 
or  any  other  of  the  apparent  evils  of  life,  all  these  things 
will  accomplish  for  him,  whether  living  or  dying,  some  real 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Prinriples  of  Religion.  29 

good.  For  it  is  not  possil)le  that  God  can  he  at  any  lime 
unmindful  of  him  who  earnestly  wishes  to  become  just,  and, 
striving  after  virtue,  to  become  like  God,  as  far  as  mortal 
man  can."  (Civitas,  X,  G12,  013). 

Such  could  be  the  language  of  him  only  who  as  an  earnest 
child  of  nature,  was  a  true  son  of  God ;  these  words  are  the 
real  embodiment  of  Plato's  thought,  they  are  not  empty 
sounds.  What  confidence  in  God,  patience  of  evil,  love  of 
the  truth,  nobility  of  soul,  and  oneness  with  nature  are  here 
manifested!  Though  Christ  was  unknown  to  him,  and 
untliought  of,  he  yet  drank  deeply  of  the  Father  of  all. 
And  as  he  was  not  alone  in  those  days,  so  through  all  tlie 
ages  have  there  been  souls  almost  drunken  with  divinity, 
though  living  without  Christ. 

Shall  we  curse  men  who,  though  not  believing  as  we  do, 
arise  to  far  greater  heights  of.self-control  and  spiritual  pur- 
ity !  Unbelieving  as  they  may  be,  we  yet  see  in  them  the 
reflection  of  purer  manhood  and  wills  more  resigned  to 
nature  and  nature's  God,  than  in  ourselves.  Hear  one  of 
these  great  souls : 

"  P>erything  is  harmonious  to  me  which  is  harmonious  to 
thee,  O  Universe ;  nothing  is  too  early  or  too  late  for  me 
which  is  in  time  for  thee.  Everything  is  fruit  to  me  which 
thy  seasons  bring,  O  nature  ;  from  thee  are  all  things,  to 
thee  all  things  return.  The  Athenians  say  '  Beloved  City  of 
Cycrops;'  and   shall  I   not   say  '  Beloved  City  of  God.'  " 

(Marcus  Aurelius). 

Such  depths  of  resignation  and  soul-purity  are  rarely 
found  among  Christians.  Such  men  in  the  words  of  Christ 
"hunger  and   thirst"    after   holiness    and   purity   of   life. 


30  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

Shall  we  curse  men  for  finding  the  dear  Father  of  all  mak- 
ing himself  known  without  respect  of  persons  to  all  his  sor- 
row-stricken children !  Shall  we  utter  maledictions  because 
they  see  not  with  our  eye,  when  beliolding  the  face  of  the 
Almighty!  These  are  they  who,  looking  with  eager  eyes 
into  the  awful  void  around  and  within  us  for  light  and  com- 
fort, preach  that  truly  everlasting  gospel  that  all  are  bound 
by  golden  cords  of  love  to  tlie  merciful  heart  of  God.  Was 
Schopenhauer  the  worse  because  he  could  say : 

"  How  does  every  line  display  its  firm,  definite  and 
throughout  harmonious  meaning!  From  every  sentence 
deep,  original  and  sublime  thoughts  arise,  and  the  whole  is 
pervaded  by  a  high  and  holy,  and  earnest  spirit.  Indian 
air  surrounds  us,  and  original  thoughts  of  kindred  spirits. 
And  oh ;  how  thoroughly  is  the  mind  here  washed  clean  of 
all  early  engrafted  Jewish  superstitions,  and  of  all  philos- 
ophy that  cringes  before  these  superstitions !  In  the  whole 
world  there  is  no  study,  except  that  of  the  originals,  so 
beneficial  or  so  elevating  as  that  of  the  Oupnekat.  It  has 
been  my  solace  in  life,  it  will  be  the  solace  of  my  death." 

Natural  religion,  accepting  no  peculiar  revelation,  cares 
not  for  the  religion  a  man  professes  ;  it  demands  as  the  one 
condition  of  happiness  and  true  worth,  here  or  hereafter,  a 
virtuous  life.  And  I  doubt  not  that  such  a  life  is  a  passport 
throughout  the  great  universe  of  God.  Let  us  not  care  for 
the  faith  a  man  professes,  provided  that  by  it  his  soul  clings 
to  God,  the  beautiful  and  good,  and  that  under  its  influence 
he  lives  a  manly  and  devout  life.  Christ  came  not  for  his 
own  glory,  but  for  that  of  the  Father ;  and  he  that  loveth 
most  humanity,  he  it  surely  is  that  God  most  loves.     Instead 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion,   ol 

of  cursing,  let  Christians  be  glad  that  such  men  have  found 
something  which  may  heli)  tU;'in  bear  the  burden  of  life, 
which  ennobles  and  lifts  tiiem  ui),  and  leads  their  despairing 
souls  to  God.  Let  us  acknowledge  t'ae  true  and  the  good 
wherever  we  find  it,  whether  in  the  Brahmin  or  the  Christian. 

"  He  prayeth  best  who  lov^eth  best 
»  All  things  both  great  and  small ; 

For  the  dear  God  who  loveth  us 
He  made  and  loveth  all." 

C:         SCIENCE  AND  REVEALED  RELIGION. 
(A)  :     REVELATION  IN  GENERAL : 

We  have  now  come  to  the  consideration  of  revealed  re- 
ligion. At  the  outset  it  must  be  stated  that  we  no  sooner 
affirm  its  existence  than  multitudes  of  scientific  men  question 
our  assertion  and  refuse  their  assent.  The  opinion  of  such 
men  may  be  said  to  be,  on  the  whole,  in  agreement  with 
that  of  Darwin  who  in  answer  to  the  questions  of  a  Dutch 
student  in  the  year  1873,  expressed  his  own  thus: 

"1  am  sure  that  3'ou  will  excuse  my  writing  at  length, 
when  I  tell  you  that  I  have  long  been  much  out  of  health, 
and  am  now  staying  away  from  my  home  for  rest.  It  is  im- 
possible to  answer  your  questions  briefly  ;  and  I  am  not 
sure  that  I  could  do  so,  even  if  I  wrote  at  length.  I>ut  I 
may  say  that  the  impossibility  of  conceiving  that  this  grand 
universe,  with  our  conscious  selves,  arose  through  chance, 
seems  to  me  the  chief  argument  for  the  existence  of  God  ; 
but  whether  this  is  an  argument  of  real  value,  I  have  never 
been    able  to  decide.     I  am  aware  that  if  we  admit  a  first 


32  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

cause,  the  mind  still  craves  to  know  whence  it  came,  and 
how  it  arose.  Nor  can  I  overlook  the  difficultj^  from  the  im- 
mense amount  of  suffering  through  the  world.  I  am  also 
induced  to  defer  to  a  certain  extent  to  the  judgment  of  the 
many  able  men  who  have  fully  believed  in  God  ;  but  here 
again  I  see  how  poor  an  argument  this  is.  The  safest  con- 
clusion seems  to  me  that  the  wliole  subject  is  beyond  the 
scope  of  man's  intellect ;  but  man  can  do  his  duty."  Again 
in  answer  to  the  repeated  question  of  a  German  student,  in 
1879,  writing  from  Down,  Beekenham,  Kent,  the  same 
author  says: 

"  Down,  Beekenham,  Kent,  June  5th,  1879. 
"  To  Nicholas  Mengden,  — 

Dear  Sir :  I  am  an  old  man 
much  engaged  and  out  of  health,  and  I  cannot  spare  time  to 
answer  your  questions  fully,  —  nor  indeed  can  they  be  an- 
swered. Science  has  nothing  to  do  with  Christ,  except  in  so 
far  as  the  habit  of  scientific  research  makes  a  man  cautious 
in  admitting  evidence.  For  myself  I  do  not  believe  that 
there  has  ever  been  a  Revelation.  As  for  a  future  life, 
every  man  must  judge  for  himself  between  conflicting  and 
vague  probabilities.  Wishing  you  happiness,  I  remain 
Yours  faithfully, 

Charles  Darwix." 
The  general  unbelief  in  the  miraculous  which  now  charac- 
terizes the  whole  scientific  world,  is  of  very  recent  date.  It 
has  arisen  the  present  century  as  the  result  of  discoveries 
of  scientific  investigation.  Within  the  past  sixty  years  the 
great  sciences  of  biology,  chemistry,  geology,  and  physics, 
with    all    the    far-reaching  and  universal  deductions  made 


A  Philosophic'il  IiKjia'r;/  info  the  Principles  of  Religion.  33 

ihcrofroni,  have  been  acquirctl.  The  doctrines  of  the  Con- 
servation of  Energy,  now  universally  received,  and  Evolution, 
now  received  by  the  most  eminent  in  every  department  of 
science,  have  had  their  birth  within  the  same  period  ;  and 
their  accei)tatioa  has  changed  the  whole  world's  mode  of 
thinking. 

"  The  greater  number  of  naturalists  consider  the  doctrine 
of  Evolution  as  firmly  established  to-da}^  as  is  the  Copernican 
theory  of  planetary'  revolution,  the  theory  of  gravitation,  or 
the  undulatory  theory  of  light." 

(Angelo  Heilprin  :  Geolog.  Evidences  of  Ev. ,  1888.) 

In  Biology  the  advances  have  been  marvelous.  While  life- 
force  yet  remains  a  mystery,  it  is  well  enough  known  to-day 
that  the  germ  out  of  which  man  is  built  differs  in  no  visible 
respect  from  that  wliich  constitutes  the  germ  of  any  animal, 
or  plant.  Tlie  simplest  form  of  life  is  that  which  is  common 
to  every  living  thing.  The  name  of  this  elementary  life,  is 
protoplasm.  It  is  a  colorless,  jelly-like,  heterogeneous 
substance,  very  unstable  in  its  composition.  The  lowest 
known  form  of  animal  life,  called  Bathybius,  differs  but  little, 
if  at  all,  from  a  molecule  of  protoplasm  ;  and  man,  the  highest 
form  of  animal  life,  is  only  a  multitude  of  these  molecules 
arranged  differently  in  different  parts  of  the  bod}-,  according 
to  the  function  to  l)e  performed. 

Of  Geology,  although  the  first  volume  of  L^-ell's  Principles 
appeared  only  in  1<S;]0,  we  know  that  it  has  made  us  ac- 
quainted with  the  history  of  the  earth,  and  with  her  extinct 
forms  of  plant  and  animal  life.  Her  history  is  indelibly 
written  in  tables  of  stone;   and  those  who  will,  may  know 

3 


34  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

her  biography  from  her  cradle,  the  bosom  of  the  sun.  to  her 
present  state  of  declining  life. 

The  spectroscope  has  revealed  to  us  the  nature  and  condi- 
tion of  the  sun,  stars,  and  comets.  The  latter  bodies  being 
bnown,  are  no  longer  feared  ;  nor  can  their  frightful  appear- 
ances again  be  used  to  forward  the  evil  designs  of  the  eccle- 
siastics. Astronomy  teaches  us  tliat  tlie  sun  with  all  its 
attendant  bodies,  is  but  a  small  star  with  its  satellites  re- 
volving around  some  common  astral  centre  of  gravity.  Since 
the  days  of  Newton  who  made  the  great  discovery  of  universal 
gravitation,  all  movements  are  more  and  more  referred  to 
general  laws.  Indeed  it  may  in  truth  be  said  that  we  live 
to-day  under  the  conscious  sway  of  universal  law. 

In  Chemistry  rapid  strides  have  been  made.  As  the  mighty 
globes  swinging  in  the  awful  universe  tell  us  of  their  similarity 
in  constitution,  origin,  and  history  ;  so  of  the  atoms  which, 
form  these  globes,  is  it  believed  that  their  ultimate  substance 
is  tommon.  By  whatever  name  we  call  matter  under  differ- 
ent atomic  arrangement  or  association,  it  is  quite  generally 
admitted  that  there  is  but  one  ultimate  substance ;  and  that 
even  the  different  forces  of  matter  and  mind  may  be  but  the 
manifestation  of  one  common,  universal  force,  or  being, 
acting  everywhere  according  to  law  and  order. 

The  days  of  little  things  in  science  are  over ;  great  discov- 
eries may  now  be  expected.  We  are  yet  to  behold  more 
clearly  the  footprints  of  the  Everlasting  Father.  If  a  man, 
having  fallen  asleep  sixty  j'ears  ago,  were  now  to  awake,  he 
would  not  know  the  earth.  On  beholding  the  locomotive,  he 
would  imagine  he  saw  the  medieval  devil ;  and  the  telegraph 
he  would  declare  to  be  the  work  of  occult  powers.     On  look- 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   35 

ing  for  liis  fairies, they  would  nowhere  be  found  ;  his  witches 
and  wizards  would  long  ago  have  l)con  diad.  In  the  words 
of  Huxley,  before  the  British  Association  of  scientists :  — 

"  For  good  or  for  evil  we  have  passed  into  a  new  epoch, — 
the  epoch  of  science." 

This  means  that  science  is  ruler  of  the  world;  it  is  she 
that  to-day  speaks  ex  cathedra.  It  certainly  may  be  said 
that  all  men  of  even  a  very  moderate  education  are  to  a  very 
large  extent  governed  in  their  action  by  the  opinions  of 
scientists;  and  that  all  in  search  after  any  form  of  truth 
whatever,  accept  as  facts,  undisputed  scientific  determina- 
tions. This  is  nowhere  made  more  manifest  than  in  the 
pulpit  of  to-day,  wlien  the  man  in  it  is  educated,  that  is, 
conversant  with  the  thought  of  the  age  in  which  he  lives. 
Such  a  man  knows  little  or  nothing  of  hell ;  little  or  nothing 
of  damnation  ;  but  he  is  not  slow  in  speaking  to  us  of  our 
duties  one  to  another,  as  children  of  the  same  dear  God  who 
loveth  all ;  and  of  the  deep  satisfaction  which  results  from 
doing  good;  of  the  heaven  abiding  in  the  breast  of  the  vir- 
tuous, of  the  hell  raging  in  the  breast  of  the  vicious.  But 
in  the  monstrous  doctrinesof  old,  which  the  ignorant  man 
labors  so  earnestl}'  to  inculcate,  the  educated  minister  dors 
not  ileal,  and  docs  not  believe.  It  is  well,  therefore,  that 
we  should  know  what  science,  which  represents  so  largely  the 
intellect  of  the  world,  thinks  of  our  faith. 
a:      The  Fact  of  a  Revelation. 

The  world  is  scientific;  the  world  is  theistic  ;  the  world 
is  religious.  That  man  is  theistic  and  religious  is  a  neces- 
sar}'  consequence  of  his  nature  and  environments.  But  can 
■we  add  to  this  the  assertion  that  in  ad<lition  to  man's  indef- 


36  Essays  on  Hod  and  Man, 

inite  knowledge  of  God,  we  have  a  Revelation.  Should  we, 
while  affirming  the  existence  of  God,  deny  that  we  have  any 
higher  knowledge  of  hira  tlian  nature  gives  us,  such  a  denial 
must  be  based  on  one  of  the  following  suppositions : 

A  Revelation  is  impossible  ; 

A  Revelation  is  useless  ; 

A  Revelation  has  never  been  made, 
(a)  :  Is  a  Revelation  Possible: 

If  we  deny  the  possibility  of  a  Revelation,  it  must  be  on 
some  one  of  the  following  grounds : 

God  is  not  free  ; 

God  is  unknowable ; 

A  Revelation  could  not  be  proved. 
I:  In  answer  to  the  assertion  that  God  is  not  free,  we 
have  the  admission  on  the  part  of  even  the  most  eminent 
evolutionists  that  there  are  in  nature  the  marks  of  design. 
The  opinions  of  atheists,  such  as  Haeckel,  Seidlitz,  Oscar 
Schmidt,  Clifford,  and  others,  negative  all  marks  of  design 
in  the  universe;  but  we  have  shown,  and  we  affirm,  that  the 
scientific  world,  as  such,  is  theistic.  On  the  question  of  the 
marks  of  design  in  nature,  we  again  quote  Prof.  Crookes : 
"This  building  up  of  evolution  is  above  all  not  fortuit- 
ous ;  the  variation  and  development  which  we  recognise  in 
the  universe,  run  along  certain  fixed  lines  which  have  been 
preconceived  and  fore-ordained.  To  the  careless  and  hasty 
eye  evolution  seems  antagonistic  to  design ;  but  the  more 
careful  observer  sees  that  evolution  steadily  proceeding 
along  an  ascending  scale  of  excellence,  is  the  strongest 
argument  in  favor  of  a  preconceived  [)lan."  This  opinion 
of  Crookes  was  announced  in  the  year  1886,  before  as  emi- 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.  37 

nent  a  body  of  men  as  the  earth  ever  saw, — tlie  British 
Association  of  Scientists.  Among  the  many  English  scien- 
tists vvlio  see  in  nature  the  marks  of  design,  we  may  men- 
tion the  names  of  Owen,  AVallace,  Darwin,  Romanes,  Daw- 
son, Lycll  and  others  ;  and  very  many  of  the  most  eminent 
German  scientists  take  tlieir  stand  with  them :  Here  are 
found  such  great  names  as  Ileer,  Koelliker,  Bivumgarten, 
Braun,  Volkman,  Schaaffhauscn,  ^lacdler,  Wigand,  von 
Baer,  and  many  otliers.  AVe  affirm  without  fear  of  contra- 
diction that,  notwithstanding  some  exceptions,  tlie  scientific 
world,  as  such,  believes  in  design.  But  a  designing  mind 
must  necessarily  be  free.  Therefore  we  cannot  deny  the 
possibility  of  a  Revelation  on  the  ground  that  God  is  not 
free.  And  let  us  not  forget  that  we  have  alrca  ly  shown 
that  apart  from  the  teaching  of  the  ph3'sical  scientists, 
admitting  our  own  freedom,  tlie  freedom  of  God  follows  as 
a  necessary  consequence.  Failing  to  disprove  the  possibil- 
ity of  a  Revelation  on  the  ground  that  God  is  not  free,  shall 
we  next  assert  its  impossibility  on  the  ground  that  — 
II :     God  Is  Unknowable. 

It  seems  t(j  us  that  the  word,  "  unknowability,"  carries 
■with  it  an  ambiguit}'.  If  it  be  meant  that  we  cannot  com- 
prehend the  Infinite  One,  we  admit  it.  It  were  absurd  to 
say  that  the  limited  could  comprehend  the  unlimited ;  the 
conditioned,  the  unconditioned.  But  if  on  the  other  hand 
it  be  meant  that  we  are  unable  to  have  any  idea  of  the 
nature  and  attributes  of  God,  I  deny  the  truth  of  the 
assertion. 

"We  are  compelled  by  the  constitution  of  our  mind,  to 
believe  in  the  existence  of  an  Absolute  and  In!inite  Being." 


38  Essays  on   God  and   J  Ian, 

(Mansol).  "Unless  a  real  Non-relative  or  Absolute  be  i)ost- 
iilated  the  relative  becomes  absolute,  and  so  brings  the 
argument  to  a  contradiction.  And  on  contemplating  the 
process  of  thought,  we  have  equally  seen  how  impossible  it 
is  to  get  rid  of  the  consciousness  of  an  actuality  lying 
behind  appearances  ;  and  how  from  this  impossibilitj^  results 
our  indestructible  belief  in  that  actuality.  Clearly  then  the 
very  demonstration  that  a  definite  consciousness  of  tlie 
Absolute  is  impossible,  unavoidably  pre-supposes  an  indefi- 
nite consciousness  of  it." 

(Spencer:     First  Principles,  sect.  26). 

As  it  is  impossible  to  find  a  mind  more  capable  than 
Spencer's  of  speaking  on  this  abstruse  subject,  the  knowa- 
bility  or  unknowability  of  God,  we  rest  on  his  authority, 
and  hold  that  we  have  an  indefinite  knowledge  of  the  Abso- 
lute or  God,  and  affirna  that  we  have  no  scientific  ground  for 
denying  the  possibility  of  a  Revelation  on  the  grounds  of 
the  unknowability  of  God. 

Ill:  If  we  deny  the  possibility  of  a  Revelation  on  tlie 
ground  that  it  could  not  be  proved,  we  have  only  to  cite  the 
ablest  logician  of  this  century,  himself  an  infidel : 

"  It  is  evidently  impossible  to  maintain  that  if  a  super- 
natural fact  really  occurred,  proof  of  its  occurrence  cannot 
be  accessible  to  human  faculties.  The  only  question  to  be 
entertained  is  that  of  evidence."  (Mill:  P^ssaj-s  on  Relig- 
ion). We  cannot  therefore  deny  the  possibility  of  a  Reve- 
lation on  the  grounds  that  no  evidence  could  substantiate 
it. 

(b):  The  second  ground  assumed  for  disbelieving  in  a 
Revelation,  is  that  it  would  be  useless.     In  a  world  where  so 


A  Philosophical  Inquinj  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.  39 

much  uncertainty  attends  every  act ;  where  every  moment 
is  full  of  anxiety ;  where  the  days  are  full  of  labor  and 
strife,  and  the  nights  of  sad  and  painful  rejections  ;  where 
every  house  is  full  of  broken  hearts,  and  every  bosom  is  a 
grave ;  where  every  one  is  longing  to  know  if  we  shall  ever 
again  meet  with  those  loved  ones  who  went  awa}-  from  us 
into  the  gloom  of  death,  —  can  it  be  said  that  in  such  a 
world  there  is  no  need  of  a  Revelation?  We  affirm,  there- 
fore, that  we  cannot  deny  the  possibility  of  a  Revelation  on 
the  grounds  that  it  would  be  useless.  We  pass,  therefore,  to 
the  third  main  ground  for  refusing  to  believe  in  a  Revela- 
tion :  — 

(c)     Has  a  Revelation  ever  been  made: 

We  must  understand  that  Christians  are  not  the  only  peo- 
ple who  claim  for  their  religion  a  divine  origin  ;  and  it  must 
be  admitted  that  it  is  indeed  very  difficult,  if  not  wholly  im- 
possible, to  find  any  criteria  which,  when  applied,  can  en- 
able the  critical  and  unprejudiced  mind  to  conclude  that 
the  Christian  religion  has  an}"  sufficient  grounds  for  its 
exclusive  claim  to  a  divine  origin.  Christians  frequently 
adduce  in  proof  of  such  claim  the  great  age  of  the  Christian 
Churcli,  or  the  many  adherents  of  their  faith,  or  the  remark- 
able rapidity  of  its  early  progress,  or  the  purity  of  Christian 
doctrine,  or  the  man}-  alleged  miracles.  Now  I  am  obliged 
to  confess  that  I  can  find  but  little  in  these  adductions  to 
substantiate  the  exclusive  claim  of  the  Christian  Church  to 
a  divine  origin.  If  age  or  numbers  of  adherents,  or  rapidity 
ot  progress,  could  determine  the  question  whether  or  not  a 
religion  Is  divine,  then  the  claim  of  the  Christian  cannot 
take   precedence.     Nor  can   the    Christian   easily,  if  at  all, 


40  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

substantiate  his  exclusive  claim  to  a  divine  origin  for  his  faith 
by  tlie  purity  of  Christian  doctrine  ;  for  I  must  admit  that 
all,  or  nearly  all,  the  sublime  moral  teaching  of  the  Chris- 
tian Church  can  be  found  scattered  through  the  teachings  of 
moralists  and  religionists  who  were  non-Christian.  As  to 
attempting  to  substantiate  the  exclusive  claim  to  a  divine 
origin  of  the  Christian  faith,  b}-  pointing  to  the  many  alleged 
miracles,  we  have  only  to  say  that  in  like  manner  do  the  fol- 
lowers of  all  religions. 

There  is  much  in  the  Bible,  as  in  the  sacred  books  of 
other  people,  accepted  as  inspired,  which  really  clothes  the 
Deity  with  diabolism. 

To  the  fact  that  these  assertions  are  true  must  be  referred  . 
the  falling  awa}'  from  the  Christian  Church  of  such  famous 
characters  as  Renan,  Schopenhauer,  Carlysle,  Mill,  George 
Elliot,  and  countless  numbers  of  others.  Carlj'sle  was  a 
rigid  Presbyterian  ;  Renan  was  a  devout  Roman  Catholic,  a 
fine  Hebrew  scholar,  and  prepared  for  the  priesthood ; 
George  Elliot  was  an  Evangelical,  I  believe,  of  the  Metho- 
dist type ;  and  Mill  was  brought  up,  I  believe,  a  Presby- 
terian. 

In  addition  to  various  insignificant  faiths  claiming  a 
divine  origin,  there  are  not  less  than  three  universal  relig- 
ions, each  of  which  has  always  put  forward  very  similar 
arguments  in  proof  of  its  divine  origin. 

Buddism :  This  was  a  widely  prevaiHng  religion  long 
before  the  foundation  of  Christianity.  It 
numbers  to  day  about  500,000,000  adherents. 

Islamism  :  This  has  spread  among  a  great  many  races  — 
Semites,  Aryans,  Tartars,  Negroes  and  others. 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Relirjion.  41 

Its    foundation    occurred    about    577     years 

subsequent  to  that  of  Christianity.     It  numbers 

to-day    about  207,000,000  adherents,    and  is 

rapidly  spreading  in  some  parts  of  the  world. 

Christianity:       The  Christian  thuich  was   founded  about 

1851>  years  ago,  and  has  to-day  about   100,- 

000,000  adherents. 

In  addition  to  the  claims  of  a  divine  origin  on  the  i)art  of 

each  of  these  world-wide  religions,  it  should  be  stated  that 

such  claims  were  made  also  by  the  religions  of  Greece  and 

Rome.     Here  also  we  find  miracles  and  the  fulfilment  of 

prophecy,  brought  forward  in  proof  of  such  origin.     That 

the  Greek  and  Roman  peoples  had  faith  in  their  religions,  is 

sufficiently  attested  by  the  position  of  their  priests,  by  the 

magnificence  of  their  temples,  and  by  the  largeness  of  their 

offerings  and  sacrifices. 

The  system  of  Buddism  dates  back  not  less  than  three 
thousand  years,  and  is  full  of  miracles  and  manifestations 
of  the  Deit}' ;  and  Mohaniraodanism  in  proof  of  its  divine 
foundation,  presents  us  a  long  list  of  most  wonderful  occur- 
rences. 

Mahomet:  This  remarkable  man  was  born  in  Mecca, 
April,  569.  The  name  of  his  father  was 
Abdallah  who  was  so  very  handsome  that  not 
less  than  two  hundred  beautiful  virgins  died 
broken-hearted,  on  his  union  in  marriage  with 
Almina,  afterwards  to  become  the  mother  of 
Mahomet.  At  the  moment  of  his  birth  report 
says  that  the  new-born  child  raised  his  eyes 
to  heaven  and  cried:  "There  is  no  God  but 
God,  and  I  am  his  i>rophet." 


42  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

Heaven  and  earth  we  are  told  shook  at  his  advent.  "  The 
lake  Sawa  shrank  back  to  its  secret  springs  ;  the  palace  of 
Khosru,  King  of  Persia,  shook  to  its  foundations  ;  the  sacred 
fire  of  Zoroaster,  which  had  uninterruptedly  burned  for  more 
than  a  thousand  years,  was  suddenly  extinguished  ;  and  the 
demons  which  lurk  in  the  stars  and  exert  a  malignant  influ- 
ence over  tlie  children  of  men,  were  cast  forth  by  the  pure 
angels  and  hurled,  with  their  arch-leader,  Eblis  or  Lucifer, 
into  the  depths  of  the  sea."     (Irving:     Life  of  Mahomet.) 

Mahomet  when  only  three  years  old  was  visited  by  two 
angels  who  laid  him  on  the  ground,  took  out  his  heart, 
cleansed  it  from  all  impurity,  filled  it  with  faith  and  prophetic 
light,  and  finally  replaced  it  in  the  breast  of  the  child.  They 
also  marked  him  between  the  shoulders  with  the  seal  of 
prophecy,  and  caused  a  celestial  light  to  radiate  from  his 
countenance,  which  was  never  thereafter  to  leave  him.  When 
forty  j-ears  old  he  was  again  visited  by  an  angel  who  gave 
him  a  roll,  and  commanded  him  to  read  it.  This  roll  is  said 
to  have  been  the  Koran,  the  faith  of  Islam. 

Jesus  Christ :  By  this  name  is  the  Founder  of  the  Chris- 
tian Church  known  ;  and  in  this  name  do  all 
Christians  hope. 

Jesus  Christ  was  born  in  the  reign  of  Herod  the  Great, 
who  died  in  the  year  750  A.  U.  C.  This  fixes  the  birth  of 
Christ  not  later  than  1892  years  ago,  or  about  four  years 
antecedent  to  the  reputed  time  of  his  birth.  At  this  date  a 
virgin  who  at  the  same  time  was  the  wife  of  Joseph,  a  Naz- 
arene,  a  carpenter  by  trade,  is  said  to  have  brought 
forth  a  son,  and  by  heavenly  direction  to  have  called  his 
name  Jesus.     At  the  time  of  his  birth  wonderful  things  are 


A  Philosophical  Lujnirj/  into  (he  Principles  of  Religion.   43 

said  to  have  occurreij.  Il  is  said  that  angels  announced  him 
to  be  the  savior  of  tlu;  world  ;  that  an  unknown  star  directed 
some  wise  and  religious  men  to  the  place  where  the  new-born 
child  lay  ;  that  he  was  of  the  line  of  the  Jewish  priesthood, 
and  of  the  tribe  of  Judah.  Ilerod,  it  is  said,  liaving  heard 
tiiat  a  child  was  born  who  should  be  king,  fearing  the  loss 
of  his  throne,  issued  an  edict  to  destroy  all  the  male  children 
under  two  years  of  age.  The  savage  work  begun,  an  angel, 
according  to  report, ordered  the  parents  into  Egypt,  whence 
they  returned,  as  soon  as  they  could  with  safety,  to  Nazareth, 
a  village  in  Palestine.  Such  education  as  the  village  afforded 
we  may  believe  he  received  ;  and  like  Timoth}',  he  must  have 
known  the  Old  Testament  writings  at  an  early  age.  At  the 
age  of  twelve  he  is  said  to  have  been  found  in  the  temple, 
reasoning  with,  and  confounding,  the  Jewish  doctors.  Noth- 
ing further  is  reported  of  this  wonderful  child,  in  the  re- 
ceived or  so-called  canonical  Scriptures,  for  about  eighteen 
years.  In  the  apocryphal  gospels,  however,  which  are 
classed  b}'  all  among  the  very  earliest  Christian  remains,  and 
by  not  a  few  said  to  be  the  originals  of  our  so-called  canonical 
Gospels,  we  have  quite  a  full  account  of  the  boyhood  of 
Jesus.  In  these  gospels,  although  he  remains  the  wonder- 
worker, Jesus  is  represented  as  possessing  all  those  qualities 
of  mind  and  heart  which  peculiarly  characterise  children, 
suqh  as  disobedience,  disrespect,  envy,  jealously,  spite,  re- 
venge, etc.  Indeed,  nothing  can  be  clearer  proof  of  the 
utter  lack  of  tlie  critical  spirit  of  the  early  Christians,  if  not 
of  the  Apostles  themselves,  and,  therefore,  of  tlieir  untrust- 
worthmess  as  witnesses  and  judges  of  what  they  allege  to  be 
supernatural  occurrences,  than  the  undoubted  fact  that  these 


44  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

so-called  apocrj'phal  gospels,  were  at  least  produced  and 
gained  currency  in  the  very  earliest  Christian  times,  if  not 
in  the  Apostolic.  From  a  study  of  these  apocr3'^phal  writings, 
many  have  been  led  to  reject,  as  not  worthy  of  credence, 
the  Gospels  which  Christians  to-da}'  receive  as  canonical, 
whether  original  or  derived.  I  sincerely  think  that  the 
making  public  tliese  original  remains  of  Christianity  will 
have  the  effect  of  weakening  rather  tlian  strengthening  men's 
faith  in  the  divine  origin  of  Christianit}',  as  far  as  we  mean 
b}'  tliis  that  it  is  the  only  divine  and  authoritative  Revela- 
tion. We  will  here  give  a  few  of  the  reputed  actions  of 
Jesus,  as  reported  in  tliese  so-called  apocryphal  writings : 

"  And  it  came  to  pass,  after  Jesus  had  returned  out  of 
Eg3'pt,  when  he  was  in  Galilee,  and  entering  on  the  fourth 
3'ear  of  his  age,  that  on  the  Sabbath  day  he  was  plaj'ing 
with  some  children  at  the  bed  of  the  Jordan.  And  as  he  sat 
there,  Jesus  made  to  himself  seven  pools  of  clay,  and  to 
each  of  them  he  made  passages,  through  which  at  his  com- 
mand he  brought  water  from  the  torrent  into  the  pool,  and 
took  it  back  again.  Then  one  of  those  cliildren,  a  son  of 
the  devil,  moved  with  envy,  shut  the  passages  which  sup- 
plied the  pools  with  water,  and  overthrew  what  Jesus  had 
built  up.  Then  said  Jesus  to  him:  Woe  unto  thee,  thou 
son  of  death,  thou  son  of  Satan !  Dost  thou  destroy  the 
works  which  I  have  wrought?  And  immediately  he  who 
had  done  this  died.  Then  with  great  uproar  the  parents  of 
the  dead  boy  cried  out  against  Mary  and  Joseph,  saying  to 
them:  Your  son  has  cursed  our  son,  and  he  is  dead.  And 
when  Joseph  and  Mary  lieard  this,  they  came  forthwith  to 
Jesus  on  account  of  the  outcry  of  tlie  parents  of  the  boy. 


A  Philosophical  In'juinj  into  the  Principles  of  ReUgion.  45 

and  tlu'  gathering  together  of  the  Jews.  But  Joseph  said 
piivutely  to  IMary :  I  dare  not  speak  to  him,  but  do  you 
luhnoiiish  liiu!,  and  sa\- :  Why  hast  tliou  raised  against  us 
the  hatred  of  the  people  ;  and  why  must  the  troublesome 
hatred  of  men  be  borne  by  us?  And  his  niotiier  having  eome 
to  him,  asked  him  saying :  My  Lord  what  was  it  that  lie  did 
10  bring  about  his  death?  And  he  said:  He  deserved  death 
because  he  scattered  the  works  that  I  liad  made.  Then  his 
mother  asked  him,  saj'ing :  Do  not  so,  my  Lord,  l)ecause 
_all  men  rise  up  against  us.  But  he,  wishing  not  to  grieve 
his  mother,  with  his  right  foot  kicked  the  hinder  parts  of 
the  dead  boy,  and  said  to  him  :  Rise,  thou  son  of  iniquitj' ; 
for  thou  are  not  worthy  to  enter  into  tiie  rest  of  ni}'  Father, 
because  thou  didst  destroy  the  works  which  I  had  made. 
Then  he  who  had  been  dead,  rose  up,  and  went  away.  And 
Jesus  by  the  word  of  his  power,  brought  water  into  the 
l)ools  by  tiie  aqueduct.  And  again  the  son  of  Annas,  a 
priest  of  the  temple,  wiio  had  come  with  Joseph  holding  his 
rod  in  his  hands  in  the  sight  of  all,  with  great  fury  broke 
down  the  dams  which  Jesus  had  made  with  his  own  hands, 
and  let  out  the  water  which  he  had  collected  in  them  from 
the  torrent.  IVIoreover,  he  shut  the  aqueduct  by  which 
the  water  came  in,  and  then  broke  it  down.  And  when 
Jesus  saw  it,  he  said  to  that  bo^'  who  had  destro^'ed  his 
dams :  O  most  wicked  seed  of  iniquity' !  O  son  of  death ! 
O  workshop  of  Satan!  verily  the  fruit  of  thy  seed  shall  be 
without  strength,  and  thy  root  without  moisture,  and  thy 
branches  withered,  bearing  no  fruit.  And  immediatel\',  in 
the  sight  of  all,  the  bo}^  withered  away  and  died. 
Then  Joseph   trembled  and  look  hold  of  Jesus,  ami  went 


46  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

with  him  to  his  own  house,  and  his  mother  with  him.  And 
behold  suddenly  from  the  opposite  direction  a  boy,  also  a 
worker  of  iniquity,  ran  up  and  came  against  the  shoulder  of 
Jesus,  wishing  to  make  sport  of  him,  or  to  hurt  him  if  he 
could.  And  Jesus  said  to  him :  Thou  slialt  not  go  back 
safe  and  sound  from  the  way  that  tliou  goest.  And  imme- 
diately he  fell  down  and  died.  And  the  parents  of  the  dead 
boy  came  to  Joseph,  and  said  to  him:  Take  away  that 
Jesus  from  this  place  for  he  cannot  live  with  us  in  this  town  ; 
or  at  least  teach  him  to  bless  and  not  to  curse.  And  Joseph 
came  up  to  Jesus  and  admonished  him,  saying:  Why  dost 
thou  such  things?  For  already  many  are  in  grief  and 
against  thee,  and  hate  us  on  thy  account,  and  we  endure 
the  reproaches  of  men  because  of  thee.  .  .  .  Lions  and 
panthers  adored  him  likewise,  and  accompanied  them  in  the 
desert.  TVIierever  Joseph  and  the  blessed  Mary  went,  they 
went  before  them  showing  them  the  way,  and  bowing  their 
heads ;  and  showing  their  submission  by  wagging  their 
tails,  they  adored  him  with  great  reverence.  .  .  .  But  a 
Pharisee  w-ho  was  with  Jesus  took  an  olive  branch,  and 
began  to  let  the  water  out  of  the  fountain  which  Jesus  had 
made.  And  when  Jesus  saw  this,  he  said  to  him  in  a  rage : 
Thou  impious  and  ignorant  Sodomite,  what  harm  have  m}'- 
works  the  fountains  of  water  done  thee?  Behold,  thou 
shalt  become  as  a  drj'  tree,  having  neither  roots  nor  branch, 
nor  fruit.  And  immediately  he  dried  up,  and  fell  to  the 
ground  and  died.  And  his  parents  took  him  away  dead,  and 
reproached  Joseph,  saying:  See  what  thy  son  has  done  ; 
teach  him  to  pray,  and  not  to  blaspheme.  .  .  .  And  a 
few  days  after  Jesus  was  walking  through  the  town  when 


A  Philosophical  Inquir;/  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   47 

one  of  the  children  ran  up  :iiid  struck  Jesus  on  the  arm. 
And  Jesus  said  to  him:  So  shalt  thou  not  finish  thy  jour- 
ney. And  immediately  he  fell  to  the  ground  and  died.  .  . 
And  they  circumcised  him  in  the  cave.  And  the  old 
Hebrew  woman  took  the  i)iece  of  skin;  but  some  sa}'  that 
she  took  the  navelstring,  and  laid  it  [)ast  in  a  jar  of  old  oil 
of  naid.  And  she  had  a  son,  a  dealer  in  unguents,  and  she 
gave  it  to  him,  saying:  See  that  tliou  do  not  sell  this  jar 
of  unguent  of  nard,  even  although  three  hundred  denarii 
should  be  offered  thee  for  it.  And  this  is  that  jar  which 
Mary  the  sinner  bought  and  i)oured  upon  the  head  and  feet 
of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  which  thereafter  she  wiped  with 
the  hair  of  her  head.  .  .  .  There  was  also  a  young  wo- 
man afflicted  with  Satan ;  for  that  accursed  wretch  repeat- 
edly appeared  to  her  in  the  form  of  a  huge  dragon,  and  pre- 
pared to  swallow  her.  He  also  sucked  out  all  her  blood  so 
that  she  was  left  like  a  corpse.  .  .  .  O  the  great  mira- 
cle which  was  done  as  soon  as  the  dragon  saw  tlie  clotli  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  from  which  the  fire  darted,  and  was  cast 
upon  his  head  and  eyes !  And  with  great  fear  he  departed 
from  the  girl  and  never  afterwards  appeared  to  her.  .  ,  . 
And  the  son  of  Hanan  came  up  to  the  lishpond  of  Jesus, 
and  kicked  it  with  his  shoes,  and  the  water  of  it  vanished 
awa}'.  And  the  Lord  Jesus  said  to  him:  As  that  water 
has  vanished  awa}--,  so  thy  life  shall  likewise  vanish  awa}'. 
And  immediately  that  boy  dried  up.  (Gospel  of  Mathew, 
19,  26,  28,  29 ;  Gospel  of  Thomas,  4,  5  ;  Of  the  Infancy 
of  the  Savior,  5,  34,  46). 

Passing  from  these  apocr3'phal  accounts,  we  may  believe 
that   Jesus   grew    up    like  other  children,  and  learned  the 


48  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

trade  of  his  father.  At  the  age  of  thirty  we  find  him  on  the 
banks  of  the  famous  Jordon,  seeking  baptism  from  the 
hands  of  a  prophet  called  John.  At  his  baptism  report  saj's 
that  a  dove  descended  from  heaven  upon  him,  that  then  and 
there  was  there  a  voice  heard  saying ;  "  This  is  my  beloved 
son,  hear  ya  him."  At  another  time,  when  with  his  disci- 
ples, on  his  suddenly  looking  up  to  the  skies,  and  saying : 
"Father,  glorify  thy  son,"  a  voice  is  said  to  have  been 
heard,  saying,  "  I  have  both  glorified  it  and  will  glorify  it 
again."  This  Jesus  lived  about  thirt3'-three  j^ears.  For 
two  or  three  years  he  went  about  doing  good ;  and,  as  in 
the  case  of  the  founders  of  other  religions,  he  is  reported  to 
have  been  a  worker  of  miracles.  He  is  said  to  have  healed 
the  sick,  given  sight  to  the  blind,  caused  the  deaf  to  hear, 
the  dumb  to  speak,  and  the  dead  to  live.  He  is  represented 
as  professing  to  be  the  vSon  of  God,  and  to  have  been  with 
God  from  all  eternity,  and  to  have  the  power  to  forgive  the 
sins  of  men.  For  making  this  profession,  the  Jews,  sup- 
posing bim  guilty  of  blasphemy,  crucified  him.  The^'  said : 
"He  being  man  maketh  himself  equal  with  God."  After 
his  death  his  body  is  said  to  have  been  laid  in  a  new  sepul- 
chre, which  according  to  report  was  guarded  to  prevent  the 
stealing  of  the  body  awa}'.  On  the  third  day  report  says 
an  angel  appeared  and  rolled  away  the  stone  from  before 
the  door  of  the  sepulchre ;  and  that  thereupon  the  crucified 
Christ  arose  from  the  dead,  according  to  promise,  walked 
forth  and  remained  with  his  disciples  forty  days ;  and  that 
after  the  expiration  of  this  period,  he  ascended  bodily  and 
visiblv  into  heaven.  vSuch  is  a  brief  and  true  synopsis,  from 
the  accounts  given  us,  of  the  life  of  him  who  is  called  the 
Christ,  the  only  begotten  Son  of  the  Everlasting  Father. 


^i  Philosophical  Ltqniri/  into  the   Principlea  of  Religion.  4'J 

"We  liavo  seen  how  various  and  wonderful  are  tbe  miracles 
to  whith  tlie  Christian  Church  refers  in  pi  oof  of  its  claim. 
But  can  any  competent  jud^e  aflirm  that  these  miracles  are 
an}'  more  various  and  wonderful,  or  that  they  are  better 
substantiated  than  those  to  which  the  Mohammedans  refer 
in  i)roof  of  llie  divine  mission  of  Mahomet? 

Speaking  of  the  miracles  in  general  saj's  a  competent 
judge  and  able  logician  : 

"  There  is,  therefore,  a  vast  preponderance  of  jjrobability 
against  a  miracle  -  -  -  To  all  these  considerations 
ought  to  be  added  the  extremely  imperfect  nature  of  the 
testimony  itself  which  we  possess  for  these  miracles.  Take 
it  at  the  best,  it  is  the  uncross-examined  testimony  of  ex- 
tremely ignorant  people,  credulous  as  such  usually  are, 
honoural)ly  ciedulous  when  the  excellence  of  the  doctrine  or 
just  reverence  for  tiie  teacher  makes  thern  eager  to  believe  ; 
unaccustomed  to  draw  the  line  between  the  perceptions  of 
sense,  and  what  is  superinduced  ui)on  them  by  the  sugges- 
tions of  a  lively  imagination  ;  unverseil  in  the  dilRcultart  of 
deciding  between  appearances  and  reality,  and  between  the 
natural  and  the  supernatural;  in  times  moreover  when  no 
one  thought  it  worth  while  to  contradict  alleged  miracles, 
because  it  was  the  belief  of  the  age  that  miracles  in  them- 
selves prove  nothing,  since  they  could  be  worked  b}'  a  lying 
spirit  as  well  as  b}'  the  si)irit  of  God.  Such  were  the  'v\it- 
nesses ;  and  even  of  them  we  do  not  possess  the  direct 
testimony;  the  documents,  of  date  long  subsequent,  even 
on  the  orthodox  theory,  which  contain  the  only  history  of 
the  events,  very  often  do  not  even  name  the  supposed  eye- 
witnesses    -     -     -     -     The  Catholic  Church,  indeed,  holds 


50  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

as  an  article  of  faith  that  miracU's  liave  never  ceased,  and 
new  ones  continue  to  be  now  and  then  brought  forth  and 
believed,  even  in  the  present  incredulous  age  —  j^et  if  in  an 
incredulous  generation,  certainly  not  among  the  incredulous 
portion  of  it,  but  always  among  people  who,  in  addition  to 
the  most  childish  ignorance,  have  grown  up  (as  all  do  who 
are  educated  b}'  the  Catholic  clerg)-)  trained  in  the  persua- 
sion that  it  is  a  duty  to  believe  and  a  sin  to  doubt ;  that  it  is 
dangerous  to  be  skeptical  about  anything  which  is  tendered 
for  belief  in  the  name  of  the  true  religion ;  and  that  nothing 
is  so  contrary  to  piety  as  incredulity.  But  these  miracles 
wliich  no  one  but  a  Roman  Catholic,  and  by  no  means  ever}^ 
Roman  Catholic  believes,  rest  frequently  upon  an  amount 
of  testimony  greatly  surpassing  that  which  we  possess  for 
an}'  of  the  early  miracles;  and  superior  especially  in  one  of 
the  most  essential  points,  that  in  manj'  cases  the  alleged 
e3'e-witnesses  are  known,  and  we  have  their  story  at  first 
hand  -  -  -  The  conclusion  I  draw  is  that  miracles  have 
no  claim  whatever  to  the  character  of  historical  facts  and 
are  wholly  invalid  as  evidence  of  any  revelation  -  -  -  . 
All  the  knowledge  we  now  possess  concerning  the  history  of 
the  human  mind,  tends  to  the  conclusion  that  (Christianity) 
arose  at  the  appointed  time  by  natural  development." 

(J.  S.  Mill:  Essays  on  Religion,  —  Revelation). 

"As  an  ancient  book  claiming  the  same  origin  as  other 
books  the  Old  Testament  is  without  a  rival,  but  its  unnatural 
exaltation  provokes  recoil  and  rejection,"    (Prof.  Tyndall). 

We  have  no  doubt  that  the  scientific  world  is  in  full  accord 
with  the  opinions  thus  expressed  by  these  well  known  and 
able  writers:    it  does  not  believe  that  the  Christian's  exclu- 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  ReWjion.   ol 

sive  claim  to  a  divine  Revelation  has  been,  or  can  be,  sub- 
stantiated ;  or  that  Christianity  is  essentially  different  in  its 
origin  and  development  from  other  religions.  But  even 
admitting  the  truth  of  their  position,  it  does  not  follow  tliat 
the  general  i)rinciples  of  Christianity  are,  therefore,  not 
divine. 

(  B  )  :         THE  CHRISTIAN  REVELATION : 

a.  ITS  NATURE  AND  CLAIMS  :  — 

Exaggeration  is  the  most  common  and  destructive  vice  of 
the  age.  We  meet  it  ever3^where.  From  tlie  platform  it 
goes  up  like  sky-rockets ;  in  the  pulpit  it  is  the  terror  of 
the  ignorant,  and  the  disgust  of  the  wise.  By  it  the  light  of 
the  hearthstone  is  put  out,  truth  obscured,  and  temperance 
put  to  flight.  The  world  is  full  of  difficulties,  but  no  pui- 
suit  in  life  is  so  crowded  with  profound  mj'steries  as  is  the 
work  of  the  Cliristian  minister.  No  thought  requires  such 
powers  of  mind  ;  all  thouglit  outside  of  it,  is  not  so  full  of 
difficulties.  The  churcli  is  a  school  of  art,  because  she  uses 
it  in  all  her  outward  forms  ;  a  school  of  ethics,  because  she  is 
the  teacher  of  man's  duty  to  man  ;  a  school  of  philosoph}',  lie- 
cause  she  must  use  it  as  a  frame  to  set  her  ideas  in  ;  a  school 
of  science,  because  it  helps  her  to  interpret  the  finger-work 
of  God  ;  a  school  of  literature,  because  by  this  she  commu- 
nicates -what  she  knows  and  what  is  revealed  to  her ;  a 
school  of  theology,  l)ecause  her  special  work  is  to  know  and 
make  known  the  one  God  and  Father  of  all.  An  aptitmle 
for  books  and  a  devout  soul,  forsootli,  are  not  enough  here. 
There  is  need  of  a  ri'h,  honorable,  devout,  studious,  culti- 
vated, highlj'-endowed  miml   rei)lenislu'd  with  all  the   stores 


52  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

of  varied  learning,  in  order  to  preach  acceptably  the  Gospel 
of  Christ,  and  receive  the  confidence  of  thinking  men.  Such 
men  will  be  found  in  the  pulpit,  when  mind  is  once  more  ac- 
knowledged and  thought  rewarded. 

(a)  :     ORIGIN  AND  GROWTH  OF  THE  NEW  TESTA- 
MENT SCRIPTURES : 

I:  OF  THE  G0SPP:LS: 

The  greatest  religious  book  of  the  world  is  undoubtedly 
the  New  Testament.  No  book  is  so  highly  esteemed ;  upon 
no  other  book  do  so  many  interests  hang ;  upon  no  other 
book  is  so  much  tliought  expended.  By  some  it  is  regarded 
as  having  a  kind  of  magical  power  to  declare  their  fortunes  ; 
by  all  it  is  held  in  reverence,  as  having  centered  in  it  so 
much  of  human  faith,  so  much  of  human  hope. 

Tlie  reason  for  this  unequaled  esteem  and  reverence  given 
to  the  New  Testament  by  the  most  civilized  people  of  the 
world,  has  in  part  at  least  an  easy  explanation.  It  is  well 
known  that  the  great  host  of  mankind  are  led  by  the  few, 
and  that  the  influence  over  this  few  of  the  priestly  power 
has  in  da^'S  gone  by  been  dominant ;  and  at  all  times  it  may 
be  said  to  be  inversely  proportionate  to  the  educational 
status  of  the  people.  As  education  advances,  priestly  power 
certainly  decreases.  Nothing  is  more  capable  of  proof  than 
this: 

"The  New  Zealand  priests  are  regarded  as  ambassadors 
of  the  gods  ;  and  the  title,  '  messenger  of  the  gods,'  is  borne 
by  the  oflficers  of  the  temple  of  Tensio  dai  Sin,  the  chief 


A  Philosophical  IiKjuiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   53 

deity  of  the  Japanese  -  -  -  -  In  ancient  I^gypt,  it  was 
the  priesthood  directing  the  ceremonial  of  court-life,  who  ex- 
acted that  the  king  (belonging  to  their  order)  did  not  receive 
any  one  wlio  failed  to  follow  their  laws  of  purity  -  -  -  1 
may  add  the  extreme  case  of  the  Ja[)anese  Mikado.  Neither 
his  hair,  beard,  nor  nails  are  ever  (avowedly)  cut,  so  that 
liis  sacred  [Person  may  not  be  mutilated  -  -  -  When  be- 
lief in  the  spirits  of  the  dead  becomes  current,  the  medicine- 
man, professing  ability  to  control  them,  and  inspiring  faith 
in  his  pretensions,  is  regarded  with  a  fear  which  prompts 
obedience  -  -  -  The  (Mexican)  high-priests  were  the 
oracles  whom  the  kings  consulted  in  all  tlie  most  important 
affairs  of  tlie  state,  and  no  war  was  ever  undertaken  with- 
out their  approbation  -  -  -  The  Samoans  took  a  [)riest 
to  battle  to  pray  for  his  people  and  curse  the  enemy.  -  - 
Tlie  Assyrian  priests  had  furtiier  motives  — they  lived  on 
the  revenues  of  the  temple."  (Spencer:  Eccles.  Insti.  777, 
781 ;    Sociology,  II,  29,  63,  338). 

"Nay,  not  even  in  excessive  wealth  should  he  curse  a 

Brahmana,  but  he  should  say,  '  I  bow  before  Brahmanas.'  '* 

(Sacred  Books  of  the  East,  I,  252). 

We  assert  that  it  is  but  a  simple  matter  to  discover  what 
the  teaching  of  Christian  ministers  would  probably  be,  since 
it  is  paramount  to  tlieir  interests  to  elevate  as  much  as  pos- 
sible the  character  of  the  New  Testament,  in  order  that  the 
"  revenues  of  tlie  temple"  may  be  abundant  for  their  wel- 
fare. Another  reason,  and  not  the  least  we  hope,  for  the 
esteem  and  reverence  in  whi(;h  the  New  Testament  is  held, 
is  the  fact  of  the  eternal  truth  with  which  it  is  pregnant.     A 


54  Essaj/s  on  God  and  ^fan, 

very  little  of  this  truth  is  peculiar  to  Christianity^  the  great 
part  of  this  truth  is  common  to  all  religious  systems. 

The  first  reason  given  for  the  exaltation  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment should  make  the  thoughtful  man  suspicious  and 
hesitant ;  for  full  well  he  must  know  that  where  men's  interests 
are  at  stake,  tlie  constant  tendency  is  to  bc(;ome  forgetful  or 
but  dimly  conscious  of  the  claims  of  truth  by  the  all-engross- 
ing thoughts  of  personal  welfare.  It  would  not  be  strange, 
therefore,  knowing  human  nature  as  they  do,  if  scholars 
should  suspect  the  clergy  and  pulpit  as  guilty  of  exaggera- 
tion. In  our  consideration  of  the  origin  and  growth  of  the 
New  Testament  writings,  as  we  will  endeavor  not  to  exag- 
gerate its  excellences,  so  must  we  endeavor  not  to  depreciate 
them.  Writing  with  a  truth-loving  heart,  let  us  in  our 
examination  make  truth  and  justice  the  rule  of  judgment: 

auTui  (pa'.'/tza'..  hat  8'.a(pzf)ti  ~).z'.tT7o'>  i(7u)<;  6  (T—ouoa.ut'^  tco  ra/.r,- 
Ot^  £v  iXaiTZ():<^  vfiav  ujTTZzp  '/.rrno/  y.at  p.zzpirj  aoziov  o/y  —  The 
noble  man  judges  the  truth  according  to  each  particular 
case,  and  in  each  case  the  truth  appears  to  him;  in  this  he 
differs  most  from  other  men  in  that  lie  is  able  to  discover 
the  truth  in  each  particular  case,  making  himself,  as  it  were, 
the  rule  and  measure  of  his  judgment." 

(Aristotle:  Nic.  Eth.  Ill,  6,  4-5). 
It  is  a  common  belief  among  the  unlearned  that  the  four 
Gospels,  as  we  receive  them  to-day,  were  written  by  the  men 
whose  names  they  bear.  Tiiis  belief  cannot  stand  the  test  of 
criticism,  nor  is  it  accepted  by  the  learned  world.  Whether 
any  of  tlie  twelve  apostles  could  write  at  all,  was  with  the 
ancients,  and  is  to-day  with  the    moderns,  a  disputed  ques- 


A  Philosophical  IiK/xin/  ihto  tie  J'rinciples  of  Jieligiov.  55 

tioii.  The  weight  of  opiniuii,  however,  is  with  the  i)arty 
who  maintains  that  some  of  them  could.  It  is  admitted  by 
all  that  Jesus  himself  wrote  nothing.  He  worked  upon  the 
minds  and  hearts  of  men  through  the  power  of  the  living 
word  declared  under  the  consciousness  of  his  divine  com- 
mission. No  one  could  for  a  moment  l)clieve  that  Jesus 
would  trammel  himself  with  a  written  discourse.  The  in- 
struction given  by  Jews  to  their  children  was  oral ;  it  did 
not  call  for  writing.  Tiie  teacliing  of  Jesus  was  exclusivel}' 
oral ;  so  was  that  of  his  disciples  when  after  his  deatli  they 
began  to  tell  the  story  of  his  life,  death,  and  resurrection. 

'•  Wiiether  the  apostles  could  write  was  a  weighty*  ques- 
tion with  the  old  apologetics.  An}'-  practice  of  the  art  bj' 
them  was  at  all  events  w'ithout  evidence  -  -  - 
Moreover,  tlie  sequel  showed  that  the  twelve  who  had  stood 
nearest  the  person  of  their  divine  Master,  with  very  few  ex- 
ceptions, which  exceptions  have  in  our  time  become  doubt- 
ful, were  not  called  to  become  writers.  The  original  copies 
of  the  New  Testament  books  whether  written  by  their 
autliors  with  their  own  hands,  or  dictated  to  scribes,  or, 
finally,  copied  by  so-called  caligraphers  before  publication, 
do  not  ajipear  to  have  remained  in  existence  long.  It  is 
certain  that  no  ancient  writer  makes  mention  of  them."  . 

(Reuss:   History    of  the  N.  T.,  I,  20,  17;  II,  3G7). 

The  scenes  in  tlie  life  of  Jesus,  and  the  precious  words 
whicli  fell  from  his  lips,  were  vividl}'  fresh  in  the  minds  of 
the  apostles;  and  the  frequent  repetition  of  these  words  in- 
delibly fixed  them.  The  discourses  of  tlie  apostles,  like  the 
discourses  of  Jesus,  were  delivered  impromptu  in  the  Syrio- 
Chaldaic  language  ;  and  it  is  altogether  improbable  that  the 


56  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

speakers  ever  reduced  an}'  of  their  speeches  to  writing. 
The  living  word  is  more  effective  than  books ;  and  when  the 
speaker  is  the  ultimate  authoritv,  as  were  Jesus  and  his  dis- 
ciples, there  can  be  no  demand  for  books,  and,  therefore,  in 
all  probability,  no  supply.  The  age  was  uncritical  and  su- 
perstitious ;  tradition  everywhere  ruled : 

"  The  spirit  of  the  ancient  world  was  essentially  uncriti- 
cal.    The  science  of  history  is  altogether  of  modern  date ; 
and  the  Fathers  do  not  appear  to  have  been  more  or  less 
credulous  or  uninformed  than  their  pagan  contemporaries." 
(Wostcott:   Canon  of  the  N.  T.,  8). 

"  If  any  one  who  had  attended  on  the  elders  came,  I 
asked  minutely  after  their  sayings  —  what  Andrew  or  Peter 
said,  or  Thomas  or  James,  or  John  or  Mathew,  or  any 
other  of  the  Lord's  disciples:  what  Aristion  and  the  presby- 
ter Jijhn,  the  disciple  of  the  Lord  say.  For  I  supposed 
that  what  was  to  be  got  from  books  was  not  so  profitable  to 
me  as  wliat  came  from  the  living  and  present  voice.  "(Papias). 

In  ancient  times  tradition  was  thus  everywhere  highly  re- 
garded as  a  source  of  information  ;  but  I  cannot  agree  with 
Canon  Westcott  in  his  assertion  that  the  Fathers  were  no 
more  credulous  than  their  heathen  contemporaries,  in  equally 
responsible  positions.  There  was  no  contemporaneous  writ- 
er, Greek  or  Roman,  who  would  not  laugh  at  many  of  the 
preposterous  absurdities  ascribed  to  the  workings  of  demons, 
hobgoblins,  and  devils,  and  written  for  our  enlightraent  by 
many  of  the  early  church  Fathers  fully  believing  as  truth 
what  they  wrote.  We  will  give  one  specimen  of  the  credu- 
lity of  those  Fathers.  Clement  was  a  contemporary  of  St. 
Paul  and  St.  John,  and  was  head  over  the  church  in  Rome. 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Relifjion.  hi 

In    proving  the    reasonableness    of    the  resurrection,   this 
church  Father  thus  speaks : 

"  Let  us  consider  that  wondeiful  sign  of  the  resurrection, 
which  takes  phice  in  Eastern  lands,  that  is,  in  Arabia  and 
the  countries  round  about.  There  is  a  certain  biid  wiiieh  is 
called  the  phoenix.  This  is  the  only  one  of  il-^  kind,  and 
lives  live  hundred  years.  And  when  the  lime  of  its  dissolu- 
tion di'aws  near  that  it  must  die,  it  builds  itself  a  nest  of 
frankincense,  and  myrrh,  and  other  spices,  into  which, 
when  the  time  is  fullilled,  it  enteis  and  dies.  But  as  the 
flesh  decays,  a  certain  kind  of  worm  is})roduced,  wliich,  be- 
ing nourished  b}'  the  juices  of  the  dead  bird,  brings  forth 
feathers.  Then,  when  it  has  acquired  strength,  it  takes  up 
that  nest  in  wliich  are  the  bones  of  its  parent,  and  bearing 
these  it  passes  from  the  land  of  Arabia  into  Eg3'pt,  to  the 
city  called  Ileliopolis.  And,  in  open  day,  flying  in  sight  of 
all  men,  it  places  them  on  the  altar  of  the  sun,  and,  having 
<lone  this,  haptens  back  to  its  former  abode.  The  priests 
then  inspect  the  register  of  dates,  and  find  that  it  has  re- 
Uirned  exactly  as  the  five  hundredth  year  was  comi)leted." 
Is  there  to  be  produced  a  similar  absurdity  from  tlie  pen  of 
any  heathen  contemporary,  and  written,  as  this  is,  in  proof 
of  some  important  doctrine?  The  whole  apocryphal  gospels 
are  full  of  equal  absurdities,  many  of  which  are  revoltingl}' 
disgusting.  We  are  safe  in  asserting  that  the  ancient  world 
was  indeed  uncritical,  and  that  the  early  Christian  Fathers 
were  especially  so.  It  is  only  within  very  modern  times 
that  tradition  has  failed  to  receive  the  respect  anciently 
everywhere  paid  to  it.  Remember  the  stories  of  witchcraft 
and  wizards.     Who  among  the  uneducated  sixty  years  ago 


58  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

did  nut  yield  assent?     Even  the  scliolarly  John  Wesley  gave 
bis  unqualified  assent  to  such  stories : 

"•  The  giving  up  of  witchcraft  is,  in  effect,  giving  up  the 
Bible.  But  I  cannot  give  up  to  all  the  deists  in  Great  Brit- 
ain the  existence  of  witchcraft,  till  I  give  up  the  credit  of 
all  history  sacred  and  profane." 

(Wesley's  Journals,  602,  713). 

In  addition  to  the  credulity  of  the  age  in  which  the  Gos- 
pels were  produced,  neither  the  real  authors  of  the  Gospels 
nor  the  extent  of  their  inspired  character,  has  ever  been  to 
a  certainty  determined.  In  the  words  of  a  learned  and 
truthful  theologian : 

"  IIow  wavering,  uncertain,  and  altogether  fabulous, 
were  the  legends  of  the  origin  of  the  Gospels,  even  in  the 
second  century,  plainly  appears  in  relation  to  Mark  from 
Eusebius,  II,  15  ;  V.  8  ;  VI,  8.  They  are  here  insepara- 
bly connected  with  events  whose  historical  character  is  no 
longer  tenable."  (Reuss:     I,  186,  n). 

When  I  look  out  upon  the  world  and  tee  thousands  of  the 
very  best,  purest,  noblest,  and  most  God-loving  men  long- 
ing for  satisfactory  information  on  this  point,  and  finding 
none,  my  heart  sympathizes  with  them,  and  I  cannot  but 
grieve  at  the  injustice  they  suffer  from  the  vile  epithets 
cast  upon  their  names,  for  asking  for  a  proof  proportionate 
to  the  importance  of  the  thing  to  be  established.  For  my 
own  part  I  am  compelled  to  doubt  where  I  once  was  cer- 
tain ;  to  hesitate  where  I  once  would  hasten  ;  and  to  lis- 
ten for  the  voice  of  God  in  the  present,  instead  of  trusting 
so  blindly  to  the  dead   voice  of  the  past.     Wiih  all  this 


A  Philosophical  Inqninj  Into  the  Principles  of  Religion.     59 

uncertainty  conceniinir  the  origin  of  tlie  Gospels,  is  tliere 
no  groiimls  for  the  saying  of  Diderot: 

"  Les  premiers  fonderaents  de  la  foi  sont  done  purcment 
humain ;  les  choix  entre  les  MSS.,  la  restitution  des  pas- 
sages, enfin  la  collection  s'est  faite  par  des  regies  de  critique ; 
ct  je  ne  refuse  point  a  ajouter  a  la  divinite  des  livres  sacres 
un  degre  de  foi  proportionne  a  la  certitude  de  ces  regies. 
The  first  fountains  of  the  faith  are  purely  human ;  the 
choice  between  the  MSS.,  the  restoration  of  the  passages, 
in  fact  the  collection  is  made  by  critical  rules ;  and  I  do 
not  refuse  to  grant  to  the  divine  character  of  the  sacred 
books  a  degree  of  faith  proportionate  to  the  certainty  of 
these  rules."  And  what  rational  answer  can  we  give  to  the 
words  of  Edelmann : 

"•  Wer  kann  sich  eiu'oilden,  dass  Gott,  da  er  die  Confu- 
sion der  Abschriffteu  und  die  daraus  entstehende  Zan- 
kereyen  vorausgesehep,  nicht  viel  eber  die  Originalien  liatte 
erhalten  als  verbrennen  lassen  sollen,  wenn  er  hatte  haben 
wollen  dass  todte  Buchstaben  die  bestandige  Regel  des 
Lebens  aller  Menschen  sein  sollen.  —  Who  can  imagine  that 
God,  who  must  have  foreseen  the  confusion  of  the  sacred 
writings  and  the  disagreements  arising  therefrom,  would 
not  ha\e  preferred  their  preservation  to  their  destruction, 
had  he  wished  that  they  should  remain  the  standing  iiile  for 
the  life  of  all  men." 

Holding  on  myst'lf  frequently  in  the  dark,  yet  finding  it 
good  to  hold  on.  I  have  learned  to  hope  for  all  who  live  a 
virtuous  life.  For  tliere  is  but  one  God  and  he  is  the 
Father  of  all. 

In    accountin;!^    for   the    origin   cf  the  Gospels,  we   may 


60  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

believe  that  iu  the  early  daj^s  of  CUristianity,  every  Chris- 
tian fireside  became  a  place  where  was  heard  the  narration 
of  the  mighty  works  of  Him  who,  as  was  supposed,  was 
come  to  restore  the  departed  glory  of  Israel ;  and  that  as 
the  narrators  differed  in  mental  culture,  social  standing, 
and  religion,  so  would  their  stories  differ.  These  stories, 
related  in  most  cases  b}'  persons  who  had  not  been  eye-wit- 
nesses, would  of  course,  as  before  said,  receive  in  each  case 
that  peculiar  coloring  which  was  characteristic  of  the  indi- 
vidual who  told  them.  Thus  after  a  few  years  there  must 
have  been  in  different  localities  not  a  little  disagreement  or 
variation  in  the  reported  words  and  works  of  Jesus.  Some 
of  the  better  educated  Christians  would  in  all  probability 
write  down  for  their  own  use  and  for  that  of  their  children 
such  of  those  reported  sayings  and  doings  of  Jesus  as  most 
attracted  their  attention.  In  time  a  number  of  such  writ- 
ings appeared  (Luke  I,  1),  and  gave  apparently  a  surer 
foundation  for  the  many  divergent  traditions  about  Jesus  of 
Nazareth;  for  each  of  these  written  documents  would  differ 
one  from  another  according  to  the  locality,  the  source  of 
information,  and  the  character  of  the  writer.  While  the 
Apostles  moved  up  and  down  among  the  people,  very  little 
attention,  if  any  at  all,  was  paid  to  such  writings;  for  none 
was  odicial  or  preferred  to  tradition.  But  as  one  by  one 
the  Apostles  passed  away ;  as  little  by  little  the  light  failed 
to  be  reflected  from  those  faces  upon  which  the  Sun  of 
Righteousness  did  shine,  it  became  more  and  more  neces- 
sary to  give  to  the  world  a  more  .connected,  consistent,  and 
complete  account  of  the  sayings  and  doings  of  Jesus,  than 
could  then  be  found  in  the  fragmentary,  inconsistent,  and 


A  Philosophical  Inqnirn  into  the  Prinn'ple.^t  of  Religion.     01 

contradittor}'  accounts  which  hail  gained  currency.  The 
work  of  the  writers,  whoever  they  were  that  uudertook  this, 
was  to  collect  whatever  literature  they  could  on  the  subject, 
select  out  of  it  what  in  their  judgment  was  consistent  and 
useful,  and  where  it  was  lacking  to  interpolate  or  add  from 
their  own  knowledge  and  tradition.  Of  various  sucii  com- 
paratively complete  productions  some  would  naturally  be 
more  favorably'  received  than  others ;  and  at  an  early  day, 
and  arising  in  different  geographical  regions,  three,  bearing 
the  names  of  Ai)ostles,  were  given  precedence  over  all 
others,  and  finally  received  as  authoritative  and  inspired. 
It  was,  however,  some  time  before  they  were  received  as 
inspired  writings;  for  the  first  Christians  did  not  receive 
any  writings  as  inspired  except  those  of  the  Old  Testament ; 
nor  can  it  be  proved  in  any  case  that  the  Apostles  in  writ- 
ing to  the  churches  ever  referred  to  their  own  letters  or  pro- 
ductions as  inspired : 

"It  is  certain  that  the  Apostles  and  their  immediate  fol- 
lowers, wherever  it  was  necessary  to  adduce  a  scriptural  proof, 
confined  themselves  entirely  to  the  Hebrew  canon  -  -  -  - 
The  Apostles  themselves  do  not  appeal  to  their  own  writings 
as  authority,  but  to  tradition  and  the  Old  Testament." 

(Reuss:  II,  289,  291). 

When  these  comi)aratively  complete  accounts  of  the  life 
and  death  of  Jesus  were  published,  they  did  not  at  first  re- 
ceive any  fixed  and  common  name  ;  although  at  an  early  day 
they  were  known  by  the  name  of  Gospels.  The  fact  that 
the  three  synoptic  Gospels  come  down  to  us  as  the  work  of 
Apostles,  is  no  proof  that  they  are  the  genuine  works  of 
such  Apostles  ;  still  we  may  reasonably  conjecture  that  those 


62  Esscujs  on  God  and  Man, 

names  denote  the  oral  sources  to  which  the  respective  writers 
of  the  Gospels  supposed  tlieir  information  could  be  traced. 

(Vid.  Reuss:    174,  196). 

Of  the  three  syno[)tical  Gospels  St.  Mark  is  regarded  as 
first  in  date,  and  nearest  to  the  original  sources  of  informa- 
tion. Matliew  comes  next  in  date,  then  Luke,  which  last 
was  probably  written  late  in  the  last  quarter  of  the  first  cen- 
tury. The  extant  Gospel  of  St.  Luke  is  evidently,  as  he 
himself  informs  us,  a  critical  work.  It  bears  the  marks  of 
careful  preparation  from  original  documents,  the  author 
freely  adding  from  his  own  knowledge  and  tradition.  The 
author  of  the  Gospel  of  St.  Mathew  was  probably  not  an 
eye-witness  of  the  facts  he  records : 

"  That  the  events  as  we  have  them  are  related  by  an  eye- 
witness, by  one  of  the  twelve,  can  no  longer  be  asserted  with 
the  same  positiveness  as  formerly  -  -  -  It  may  seem  to 
others  hazardous  to  regard  this  Gospel  as  immediately  de- 
pending upon  that  of  Mark ;  it  is  certain  according  to  our 
view  that  the  reverse  relation  is  not  the  true  one,  and  that 
the  one  just   mentioned  is  in  tlie  highest  degree  probable." 

(Reuss:   190,  196). 

Speaking  of  the  three  Gospels,  it  is  altogether  improbable 
that  their  authors  were  eye-witnesses  of  what  they  record ; 
possibl}',  however,  the  author  of  the  Gospel  of  Mark  was. 

As  to  our  fourth  Gospel,  it  is  not  in  character  like  the 
others.  The  three  synoptical  Gospels  give  us  in  artless  lan- 
guage as  many  biographies  of  Christ ;  but  the  fourth  Gospel 
is  not  an  historical  work ;  on  tlie  contrary,  it  is  a  dogmatic, 
mystical,  speculative  production  probably  of  some  theologian 
of  the  Alexandrian  school.     Speaking  of  the  historical  char- 


A  Philosophical  Tnt/uirij  into  the  Princiijles  of  Reli'jioa.     G3 

acter  of  tlie  foiutli  Gospel,  says  Prof.  Reuss :  "  It  has  no 
bistorical  value."  The  same  leaniecl  authority  informs  us 
that  the  opinion  that  the  aulhor  of  this  Gospel  or  his  author- 
ity was  an  eye-witness,  must  now  he  given  up.  The  author 
and  date  of  the  fourth  Gospel  are  quite  uncertain. 

Of  the  many  theories  advanced  to  explain  the  origin  of 
the  Gospels,  their  many  discrepancies,  and  in  a  few  instances, 
palpable  contradictions,  perhaps  none  is  so  satisfactory  on 
the  whole  as  the  one  given  above ;  but  tliat  it  is  the  true 
theory,  we  are  far  from  asserting. 

Another  theory  for  the  origin  of  the  Gospels,  is  in  sub- 
stance this :  There  were  in  existence  at  a  very  early  date 
authoritative  writings,  giving  short  accounts  of  the  life  of 
Christ,  some  of  which  were  written  by  the  Apostles  them- 
selves, and  others  by  the  disciples  of  the  Apostles  either 
from  the  lips  of  the  latter  or  after  their  death.  Of  these  so- 
called  Gospels  two  are  especially  mentioned,  the  Gospel  ac- 
cording to  the  Hebrews  and  the  Gospel  according  to  St. 
Peter.  This  theory  does  not  deny  that  various  other  Gos- 
pels may  have  been  at  the  same  time  current;  but  it  holds 
that  these  two  were  the  authoritative  originals.  It  is  sup- 
posed that  the  Gospel  according  to  St.  Peter  is  the  work  of 
St.  Mark,  which  the  latter  wrote  as  the  disciple  of  St.  Peter, 
some  time  shortly  after  St.  Peter's  death  ;  while  the  Gospei 
according  to  the  Hebrews  is  supposed  to  be  the  original 
work  of  St.  Mathew,  written  by  him  in  the  language  of 
Palestine : 

"  Mathew  did  issue  a  Gospel  according  to  the  IIol)rews  in 
their  own  dialect,  while  Peter  and  Paul  were  preaching  at 
Rome,    and  laving  the   foundation    of  the    church.     Aflei 


64  Essays  on  (Jod  and  Man, 

their  departure,  Mark,  the  disciple  and  interpreter  of  Peter, 
did  also  hand  to  us  in  writing  what  had  been  preached  by 
Peter."  (Ireuaeus  III,  1). 

This  theor}^  holds  that  our  present  Gospel  according  to  St. 
Mark  was  prepared  out  of  the  materials  found  in  these  two 
proto-Gospels,  the  author  interpolating  and  adding  from  his 
own  knowledge  and  tradition  ;  and  that  some  time  afterwards 
our  present  Gospel  according  to  St.  Mathew  was  prepared 
out  of  these  same  two  proto-Gospels  and  the  present  Gospel 
of  St.  Mark,  the  author  freely  adding  and  interpolating  as 
in  the  last  case.  It  is  possible  that  the  author  of  the  proto- 
Mathew  was  also  the  author  of  this  recension.  Lastly,  the 
Gospel  of  St.  Luke  was  prepared  with  still  more  critical 
care,  and  from  richer  materials.  It  is  held,  however,  that 
the  author  of  our  Gospel  of  St.  Luke  did  not  know,  or,  if  he 
knew,  did  not  use,  the  present  Gospel  of  St.  Mathew.  In 
every  case  each  author  is  thought  to  have  added  and  cor- 
rected according  as  he  thought  himself  able,  being  governed 
by  the  current  traditions  of  the  time  and  place.  According 
to  this  theory,  the  authors  of  these  proto-Gospels  might 
have  been  e3-e-witnesses  to  what  they  recorded,  but  in  all 
probability  the  authors  of  our  present  Gospels  were  not  eye- 
witnesses of  the  facts  they  record.  Still,  it  cannot  be  proved 
that  some  of  them  were  not,  since,  according  to  this  theory  i 
it  is  possible  that  in  some  cases  the  author  of  the  original 
Gospel  and  the  author  of  the  revised  Gospel,  were  one  and 
the  same  person. 

"We  have  stated  about  all  we  know  of  the  origin  of  the 
Gospels.  We  have  tried  fearlessly  to  state  the  truth.  It 
will  be  vain  for  us  to  hope  that  we  have  thrown  much  light 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.    05 

into  the  darkness  in  which  that  origin  is  involved.  The 
darkness  is  all-obscuring,  but  not  appalling.  What  need 
have  we  of  despair  because  we  cannot  prove  the  truth  of 
this  or  of  that  assertion;  of  this  or  of  that  miracle;  or  indeed, 
of  any  miracle  at  all?  The  miracles  may  all  be  false,  and 
probably  are,  yet  God  cannot  be  ;  the  author  of  some  Gospel 
assertion  may  have  made  mistake,  yet  God  makes  no  mis- 
take; and  He  it  is  that  bids  us  hope,  and  trust,  and  pray.  In 
concluding  our  remarks  on  the  uncertainty  of  not  a  little  of 
what  is  received  in  the  Gospels  as  truth,  I  cannot  refrain 
from  quoting  the  thoughtful  and  liberal  words  of  Cannon 
Fremantle,  as  given  in  the  Fortnightly  Review: 

"  Theologians  need  not  quarrel  with  those  who  think  of 
the  Supreme  Power  rather  after  the  analogy  of  force  or  law 
than  according  to  the  strict  idea  of  personality,  provided 
that  the  moral  nature  of  man  be  held  fast  and  its  supremacy 
acknowledged.  .  .  The  theologian  of  our  new  epoch  will 
start  without  any  theory  of  inspiration.  He  will  be  ready  to 
admit  that  God  has  revealed  himself  in  part  in  other  systems 
ancient  and  modern.  He  will  not  pretend  that  the  scrip- 
tures are  perfect  in  any  part,  but  will  take  them  for  what 
they  are  really  worth  as  constituting  a  history  and  a  litera- 
ture in  which  the  development  of  religion  is  to  be  studied. 
But  the  fact  that  the  Bible  cannot  be  used  as  the  infallible 
mine  of  ready-made  statements  concerning  history  and 
morals,  will  throw  him  back  from  the  letter  to  the  spirit, 
from  the  external  proof  to  the  proof  which  is  gained  by 
thought  and  prayer  ;  while  the  development  of  religion  de- 
scribed in  scripture,  which  even  now  stands  forth  in  clear 
outline,  will  be  found  to  be  unique  in  its  verity  and  com- 


66  £ssajs  on  God  and  Man, 

pleteness,  and  at  the  same  time  a  tj'pe  of  the  development 
of  religion  generally.  The  beauty  and  harmony  of  the  whole 
and  the  moral  elevation  of  special  parts,  will  gain  by  this 
natural  treatment,  as  well  as  by  comparison  wnth  other 
sacred  books;  and  the  study  will  become  more  attractive, 
more  inspiring,  and  more  capable  of  giving  strength  and 
consolation.  .  .  The  theologian  will  be  content  to  exhibit 
Christ  as  he  reall}^  was,  and  then  to  trace  and  estimate  the 
power  which  his  life  and  death  have  exerted  over  mankind. 
The  fact  that  he  takes  human  nature  as  the  chief  guide  to 
the  divine,  and  does  not  pretend  to  an  absolute  knowledge 
of  God,  will  give  a  new  and  peculiar  interest  to  the  study  of 
the  life  and  influence  of  Christ,  It  will  made  men  much 
more  cautious  in  framing  dogmas  about  his  divinity;  but 
experience  in  the  future  as  in  the  past  can  but  increase  the 
sense  of  his  moral  supremacy,  and  the  power  of  his  life  and 
death.  And  it  is  supremacy,  not  exclusiveness  which  must 
be  vindicated  for  the  whole  Christian  system.  These  two 
terms,  supremacy  and  exclusiveness,  may  be  taken  as  mark- 
ing the  contrast  between  the  position  of  Christianity  under 
the  new  and  under  the  old  condition." 

II :     OF  THE  ACTS,  EPISTI.ES,  AND  APOCALYPSE: 

In  addition  to  the  Gospels  which  we  have  been  consider- 
ing, there  are  received  by  the  Christian  church  of  to-day 
not  less  than  twenty-three  portions  of  Scripture,  which 
come  to  us  generally  in  the  form  of  letters,  some  of  which 
are  sent  to  private  individuals,  others  to  churches. 
The  Acts  of  the  Apostles, 
The  Epistle  of  St.  Paul  to  the  Romans, 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.     (j7 

The  First  Kpistle  of  St.  Paul  to  the  Corinthians, 

The  Second     "     "     "      "     "      " 

The  Epistle  of  St.  Paul  to  the  Galatians, 

The  Epistle  of  St.  Paul  to  the  Ephesians, 

The  Epistle  of  St    Paul  to  the  Philippians, 

The  Epistle  of  St.  Paul  to  the  Colossians, 

The  First  Epistle  of  St.  Paul  to  the  Thessalonians, 

The  Second    "       "    "     "       "    " 

The  First  Epistle  of  St.  Paul  to  Timothy, 

The  Second     "      "     "     "     " 

The  Epistle  of  St.  Paul  to  Titus, 

The  Epistle  of  St.  Paul  to  Philemon, 

The  Epistle  of  St.  Paul  to  the  Hebrews, 

The  General  Epistle  of  St.  James, 

The  First  Epistle  General  of  St.  Peter, 

The  Second  Epistle  General  of  St.  Peter, 

The  First  Epistle  of  St    John, 

The  Second  Epistle  of  St.  John, 

The  Third  Epistle  of  St.  John, 

The  General  Epistle  of  St.  Jude, 

The  Revelation  of  St.  John  the  Divine. 

No  candid  person  can  for  a  moment  deny  that  while 
very  much  found  in  these  epistles  is  the  production  of  great 
and  good  men,  not  a  little  gives  most  certain  proof  of  an 
over-wrought  imagination,  or  of  an  uncultivated  and  preju- 
diced mind. 

Of  these  twenty-three  productions,  the  first,  the  Acts  of 
the  Apostles,  is  the  second  part  of  the  Gospel  according  to 
St.  Luke  ;  the  same  author  produced  the  both.  It  is  a 
chtirch  history.      As  in  origin  it  is  subsequent  to  the  Gospel 


68  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

according  to  St.  Luke,  which  was  written  in  the  last  quar- 
ter of  the  first  century,  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  could  not 
have  been  written  until  near  the  end  of  the  first  century. 
The  theology  of  this  work  is  that  of  the  Old  Testament. 
"It  nowhere  speaks  of  the  necessity  of  the  death  of  Jesus, 
and  of  its  relation  to  the  forgiveness  of  sins  or  of  the  sub- 
sequent appropriation  thereof."  (Reuss:  215). 

In  the  preparation  of  this  important  and  earliest  history 
of  the  church,  the  author  in  all  probability  had  on  hand 
many  written  documents  which  he  sorted,  arranged,  and 
incorporated  into  the  work,  and  what  he  found  lacking  he 
added  from  his  own  knowledge  and  tradition.  It  is  uncer- 
tain where  this  work  was  written.  The  author  is  supposed 
to  have  borne  the  name  of  Luke,  and  to  have  been  a  resi- 
dent of  Antioch,  and  a  Gentile  Christian. 

Of  the  remaining  twenty-two  works  no  less  than  fourteen 
pass  as  the  productions  of  St.  Paul.  Of  these  fourteen  only 
the  first  three  are  accepted  by  all  critics  as  the  genuine 
works  of  St.  Paul.  Baur  and  his  immediate  followers  reject 
all  but  the  first  four.  Most  modern  critics  reject  as  spuri- 
ous the  Epistle  to  the  Ephesians,  the  two  Epistles  to  Timothy, 
and  the  Epistle  to  Titus.  Very  many  critics  feel  compelled 
to  number  among  the  spurious  epistles  the  Epistle  to  the 
Colossians  and  the  Second  Epistle  to  the  Thessalonians. 

Of  the  Epistle  to  the  Philippians  we  may  say  its  genuine- 
ness is  denied  by  Baur,  Paulus,  Schwegler,  andHinsch;  but 
it  is  generally  held  that  there  is  no  reasonable  ground  for 
refusing  to  number  it  among  the  genuine  works  of  St.  Paul. 
The  same  may  be  said  of  the  Epistle  to  Philemon.  The 
Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  is  not  believed  to  be  the  work  of 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.     69 

Paul.  It  is  a  work  on  systematic  theology,  haviug  specula- 
tive tendencies  in  spmpathy  with  those  of  the  Alexandrian 
school.  It  presents  Christianity  not  as  a  new  thing  but 
rather  as  a  development  of  what  had  been.  As  a  piece  of 
composition,  it  is  a  masterly  production,  unequalled  by  any 
other  apostolic  writing.  In  speaking  of  the  so-called  Pauline 
epistles  as  a  whole,  out  of  the  fourteen  we  find  that  three  are 
by  modern  critics  unanimously  accepted  as  Pauline  ;  that 
four  receive  all  but  their  unanimous  consent  ;  and  that  nine 
are  admitted  to  be  the  genuine  works  of  St .  Paul  by  the 
great  majority  of  modern  critics. 

The  General  Epistle  of  St.  James  is  probably  a  genuine 
work  of  St.  James,  the  head  of  the  church  at  Jerusalem; 
but  its  authorship  is  far  from  certain.  Whoever  the  writer 
was,  he  seems  to  have  had  a  special  grudge  against  gold, 
science,  aristocracy,  and  fine  linen. 

The  First  Epistle  General  of  St.  Peter  has  from  very 
early  times  been  accepted  as  a  genuine  work  of  St.  Peter, 
although  the  question  of  its  authorship  is  to-day  very  much 
disputed.  The  epistle  is  thought  to  be  too  weak  a  produc- 
tion for  a  man  so  conspicuous  as  St.  Peter  was.  "What 
the  author  adds,"  says  Reuss,  "to  former  knowledge  from 
his  own  store  has  ever  been  to  church  and  school  an  un- 
solved problem." 

The  Second  Epistle  of  St.  Peter  is  generally  condemned 
as  a  forgery. 

The  First  Epistle  of  St.  John  is  accepted  as  a  genuine 
work  of  St.  John.  It  is  a  true  pastoral  letter.  The  Second 
and  Third  Epistles  of  St.  John  are  condemned  by  modern 
critics  as  spurious.      As  productions  they  are  all  together 


70  /zssajs  oil   Cod  and  Man, 

unimportant.  The  Epistle  of  St  Jude  is  condemned  as  a 
forgery.  It  is  regarded  as  the  enigmatical  production  of  a 
weak  mind. 

Reuss,  in  speaking  of  the  Epistle  of  St.  James,  the  First 
and  the  Second  of  St.  Peter,  the  Epistle  of  St.  Jude  and  the 
Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  says  : 

"Their  origin  is  problematical,  their  age  disputed,  their 
authors  either  unknown  and  only  determined  by  the  caprices 
of  tradition,  or  where  they  are  expresslj^  named,  a  subject 
of  contradictory  j  udgments. ' ' 

The  Revelation  of  St.  John  the  Divine  is  called  by  some 
the  first  Christian  poem.  Its  theologj^  is  Jewish.  Its 
author  is  supposed  to  be  John;  but  it  is  generally  admitted 
that  the  John  who  wrote  the  Gospel  of  vSt.  John,  was  not 
the  one  who  wrote  the  Revelation  of  St.  John.  Of  this  book 
thousands  of  interpretations  have  been  given  in  the  past, 
interpretations  as  various  as  numerous  ;  and  in  the  future  it 
is  destined  to  receive  thousands  more.  As  in  the  past  all 
have  failed  to  reduce  any  satisfactory  meaning  from  its  gro- 
tesque imagery,  so  all  future  attempts  must  end  in  failure. 
In  the  words  of  a  learned  scholar  and  theologian  the  Apoca- 
lypse is  a  "  flood  of  metaphors,  a  continual  personification 
of  abstract  ideas  which  gives  to  these  strange  creations  a 
grotesque,  horrible  life,  like  a  fantastic  resurrection  scene. 
There  is  no  clear  and  intelligible  description  ;  the  outline  of 
the  figures  are  indistinct  in  spite  of  the  coarseness  of  the 
material  in  which  they  are  clothed,  and  all  attempts  to  trans- 
fer them  by  the  help  of  the  brush  from  the  realm  of  imagina- 
tion, in  which  alone  they  mu.st  remain,  into  that  physical 
visir,n ,  have  never  produced  anything  el.se  but  monstrosities." 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  inlo  llw  Principles  of  Religion.    71 

We  have  stated  in  brief  what  we  regard  as  the  impartial 
and  critical  judgment  of  the  scholarly  world  concerning  the 
origin  and  growth  of  the  New  Testament  scriptures.  It 
may  be  thought  that  our  conclusions  have  removed  old  land- 
marks and  make  insecure  old  foundations  ;  such  a  thought, 
however,  does  not  exactly  express  the  truth.  We  have 
only  called  attention  to  the  decay  of  certain  old  landmarks, 
and  asked  men  to  look  well  to  their  foundation.  Should 
one's  hense  of  insecurity  lead  him  to  examine  well  his  foun- 
dation, perhaps,  for  his  labor  he  will  be  more  than  doubly 
repaid  in  his  consequent  experience  of  security  and  com- 
posure. Had  I  not  myself  been  well  repaid  for  making 
such  examination,  I  would  not  thus  advise  others  : 

''AXXa  fXTfTf.  Vfxeis  /xaXaMcr^TjTe,  dpwvres  -rrepi  oaoiv  6  aywv  effTiv,  67a; 
re    dei^u    ov    irapaivecaL  olos  t€  wv  jxaWov    tols     TreXas    rj    Kai    auros    epycj 

€ir€^e\eciv — Let  me  ask  you  not  to  be  discouraged  at  his 
words,  for  you  may  know  that  he  has  reasons  for  thus 
speaking  ;  and  I  will  show  you  that  I  am  not  a  person  who 
would  advise  others  to  do  what  I  would  not  do  myself." 

(Thucydides:  De  Bel.  Pel.,  V,  9). 

And  as  man  is  saved  b}'  truth  and  not  by  dogma,  whether 
in  this  world  or  in  the  next,  man  ma}-  be  sure  that,  searching 
for  the  truth,  he  will  discover  that  Universal  Life,  not,  in- 
deed, in  temples  made  of  stone,  but  in  his  heart,  that  fleshly 
temple,  where  God  delights  to  dwell  : 

"  Xon  in  effigies mutas  divinuni  spiritum  transfusum:  sed 
imaginem  veram,  caelesti  sanguine  ortam — Not  into  mule 
images  is  the  divine  spirit  transfused  ;  but  into  the  living 
images,  desending  from  celestial  blood." 

(^Annals  of  Tacitus,  IV,  51). 


73  £ssars  on  God  and  Man, 

By  as  much  as  man  uses  his  reason,  by  so  much  does  he 
rise  superior  to  the  rest  of  the  animal  world.  It  may  be 
possible  for  one  to  rest  in  blissful  ignoranCe,  but  it  becomes 
the  man  to  know  and  face  surrounding  danger.  Better  a 
plank  on  the  raging  sea,  than  confinement  in  a  scuttled 
ship.  Better  death  in  a  noble  cause,  than  life  in  base 
repose  : 

"AxiXXea  eiraLvov(Ti.v  on  e'^orjdrjcre  tu)  eraLpw  UarpoKXu}  eiouis  on,  5et 
avTov  awodaveLv,  e^ov  ^'rjy.      Tovnp  de  6  fiev  toiovtos  davaros    kuXXlov  to    de 

^T]v  (Tvix4>epov  —  People  praise  Achilles  because,  when  he  might 
have  lived  and  enjoyed  the  world,  he  went  to  the  aid 
of  his  friend  Patroclus,  knowing  well  that  such  aid 
would  cost  him  his  life.  But  to  this  man  while  life 
would  have  brought  advantages,  death  brought  lasting 
glory;"  (Aristotle:  Rhetoric,  i,  3,  6). 

b:         ITS  SETTLEMENT  AND  CHARACTER  : 

(a):  ITS  SETTLEMENT: 

We  have  said  that  the  early  Christians  relied  for  their  in- 
formation not  upon  books,  but  upon  living  teachers;  and 
that  tradition  was  the  chief  authority  upon  which  this  oral 
teaching  was  based.  Not  until  far  on  into  the  second  cen- 
turj'  did  tradition  begin  to  lose  its  power  over  their  minds 
and  hearts  as  the  chief  authority  in  matters  pertaining  to  the 
faith  of  the  Church.  Even  to-day  in  the  Catholic  church, 
tradition,  while  not  received  as  authority  equal  to  that  of  the 
written  Word,  is  still  not  without  grave  reasons  rejected; 
and  in  the  Roman  comnnniion  it  is  certainly  regarded  as 
worthy  of  equal  reverence  with  the  Scriptures,  and  logically 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  J^rinciples  of  Rcliirion.    73 

as  superior  to  them.  The  Council  of  Trent,  held  in  1564, 
under  Pius  IV,  says  : 

"  I  most  steadfastly  admit  and  embrace  Apostolic  and 
ecclesiastical  traditions,  and  all  other  observances  and  con- 
stitutions of  the  church. 

"I  also  admit  the  Holy  Scripture  according  to  that  sense 
which  our  holy  mother  the  church  has  held,  and  does  hold, 
to  which  it  belongs  to  judge  of  the  true  sense  and  interpre- 
tations of  the  Scriptures.  Neither  will  I  ever  take  and  in- 
terpret them  otherwise  than  according  to  the  unanimous 
consent  of  the  Fathers." 

None  can  fail  to  .see  that  tradition  is  here  received  as  the 
highest  authority.  Formally  it  has  the  place  of  honor  ;  log- 
ically it  decides  the  faith.  Nevertheless,  this  declaration  of 
the  Roman  church,  is  but  another  way  of  saying  what  Papias 
said  : 

"  Oi'   7Oj0    ra     iK    tuv   ^ijSXtujv    ToaavTov    iitj    ocpeXeiv    vireXa/j.^oLvov    ouov 

TO  TTo^a  s'l^'js  (pwvTji  Kai  n^vova-qs  —  I  did  not  Hot  think  that  the 
aid  I  might  get  from  ])ooks  could  be  of  as  much  value 
to  me  as  that  which  comes  from  the  living  and  abiding 
voice." 

This,  in  general  terms,  means  that  Papias,  who  was  mar- 
tyred about  A.  D.  163,  considered  information  obtained 
from  books  much  less  authoritative  than  that  obtained  from 
tradition.  This  should  convince  us  how  completely  in  early 
days  must  the  teachers  of  the  church  have  followed  the 
guidance  of  tradition,  and  how  absolutely  must  the  people 
have  acquiesced  in  their  teachings. 

Under  such  conditions  we  cannot  be  ignorant  of  the  danger 
that    must    have    attended    the    written    word.      Different 


74  /usays  o)!   God  and  Man, 

places  would  hold,  in  a  measure,  different  traditions  ;  differ- 
ent minds  when  haudinc^  them  down,  would  impart  to  them 
a  different  coloring.  The  possessors  and  transcribers  of 
MSS.  would  naturally  be  inclined  to  add,  efface,  prefix,  in- 
terpolate, affix,  or  alter  the  written  word  to  make  it  agree 
witli  the  traditions  of  the  time  and  place.  That  MSS.  did 
suffer  at  such  hands  and  from  such  causes  as  we  have  point- 
ed out,  cannot  be  disputed  ;  the  different  readings  of  the 
various  MSS.  conclusively  prove  it.  Suspicion  of  such 
meddling  with  the  original  documents  was  the  chief  cause 
which  gave  rise  to  Biblical  criticism,  and  the  certainty  of 
such  meddling  is  the  grand  result  of  it. 

The  earl}'  Christians  accepted  the  Old  Testament  Script- 
ures, including  the  Apocrypha,  as  inspired  writings.  On 
these  Scriptures  they  based  all  their  preaching  ;  to  these 
they  appealed  for  proof ;  and  from  these  they  made  their 
selections  for  reading  in  the  congregations.  No  other  writ- 
ings were  appealed  to  as  inspired.  The  Apostles  in  their 
letters,  special  or  general,  never  appealed  to  their  own  writ- 
ings as  authoritative  ;  but  in  every  case  the  appeal  was 
made  to  the  Scripture,  which  meant  exclusively  the  writings 
of  the  Old  Testament.  Of  course  the  letters  of  the  Apos- 
tles, like  the  pastorals  of  our  bishops  of  to-day,  were  made 
known  to  the  congregation  ;  but  after  such  reading  they 
were  not  regularly  used  again,  but  in  all  probability  set 
aside.  They  were  considered  private  rather  than  public 
propert}-.  With  the  exception  of  the  use  in  this  manner  of 
the.se  pastoral  letters,  there  is  no  evidence  whatever  of  the 
public  use,  before  the  middle  of  the  second  century,  of  any 
reading  from  the  books  of  the  New    Testament.     The   few 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  tlie  Principles  of  Religion.    "5 

quotations  from  the  Fathers  presuppose  an  oral  rather  than 
written  tradition.      Indeed,  in  tlie  words  of  Reuss  : 

"  Not  only  is  all  proof  from  the  period  under  considera- 
tion of  their  use  for  regular  puplic  reading  lacking,  but 
almost  all  evidence  of  their  existence." 

Of  the  synoptical  Gospels  Luke  was  last  in  coming  into 
general  use. 

It  is  probable  that  the  many  disagreements  arising  from 
varying  tradition,  led  the  early  Christians  more  and  more  to 
see  the  desirability  of  collecting  together  the  genuine  writ- 
ings of  the  Apostles  ;  and  that  the  spread  of  heresy,  especi- 
ally of  Gnosticism,  made  them  seethe  necessity  of  it. 

After  the  middle  of  the  third  century  we  find  writers  con- 
stantly referring  to  some  one  of  the  Apostolic  writings  as 
authority  for  what  they  assert. 

It  is  quite  generally  believed  that  the  earliest  canon  of 
New  Testament  writings  was  made  by  the  Gnostic  Marcion 
who  flourished  somewhere  about  the  middle  of  the  second 
century.  He  was  the  sou  of  a  bishop  and  was  one  of  the 
most  learned  men  of  the  age.  His  father  excommunicated 
him  for  his  heresy.  His  doctrine  was  received,  it  is  said, 
throughout  the  world,  and  his  personal  influence  was  great 
and  la.sting.  Polycarp,  having  returned  from  Rome,  and 
being  asked  if  he  had  seen  Marcion,  replied  : 

"  E7rt7»'tocr(cw    tov    TrpiioroKOv    tov    aarava — YeS       I    havC    SCCU    tllC 

first-born  of  Satan." 

It  has  been  the  general  custom  of  the  church  thus  to  call 
by  vilest  names,  and  to  hand  over  to  the  devil,  all  who  seek 
in  any  way  positive  knowledge,  or  show  signs  of  intellectual 
freedom       In  the  writer's  opinion,  however  many  and  great 


76  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

the  errors  of  Marcion  may  have  been,  he  was  as  good  at 
heart  as  the  best  of  his  traducers,  and  a  much  better  man 
than  his  unnatural  father.  He  may  have  failed  in  present- 
ing the  whole  truth,  but  at  least  he  did  not  die  of  intellect- 
ual stagnation  ;  nor  need  we  believe  that  God  raised  him  up 
in  vain  : 

"'0   5e  6eos  Kai.   i]   (pvats    ovdeu    ixarriv   iroLOv<nv — Neither    God    nor 

nature  ever  makes  anything  in  vain." 

(Aristotle  :  De  Coelo,  I,  4,  6). 

Marcion  recognised  Paul  only  as  a  true  Apostle.  His 
canon  of  Scriptures  consisted  of  a  book  which  he  called  the 
Gospel  of  Christ,  and  ten  epistles  of  St.  Paul.  He  rejects 
Paul's  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  and  what  are  called  his  Pas- 
toral Epistles. 

Marcion  held  that  "the  first  Apostles  had  an  imperfect 
knowledge  of  the  truth,  and  that  their  writings  necessarily 
partook  of  this  imperfection." 

It  is  a  common  practice  for  writers  on  the  canon  of  New 
Testament  Scriptures  to  quote  references  found  in  early 
church  writers  as  proof  of  the  authoriiiitive  or  inspired 
character  of  the  book  to  which  the  reference  is  made;  but 
this  is  a  dangerous  practice.  If  a  reference  so  quoted  is 
taken  as  proof  of  the  inspired  character  of  one  book,  then 
a  reference,  made  by  the  same  writer  to  any  other  book  as 
authority,  must  logically  be  a  proof  of  its  inspired  charac- 
ter. This  would  prove  too  much  ;  for  such  references  are 
made  in  abundance  to  prophets  unknown  to  us,  to  the  book 
of  Enoch,  to  the  Gospel  according  to  the  Egyptians,  to  the 
Sibyl,  to  Hystaspes,  to  the  early  Fathers  of  the  church. 
All  these  and  manv  others    are    referred    to  as    authority. 


A  PhilosopJiical  Inquiry  into  Ihc  Princip/i's  of  Re/iff  ion.      77 

We  should  understand,  therefore,  that  a  reference  made  by  a 
writer  to  an  ancient  book  is  no  conclusive  proof  that  the 
writer  believes  such  book  to  be  inspired  ;  nor  referring  to  it 
with  the  understanding  that  it  was  inspired,  would  such 
reference  made  by  him  be  conclusive  proof  of  its  inspira- 
tion. 

We  have  no  proof  whatever  of  the  existence  of  any  cc  m- 
plete  collection  of  New  Testament  writings  as  early  as  the 
middle  of  the  second  century  ;  but  it  is  highly  probable  that 
at  this  early  date,  and  certainly  shortly  thereafter,  there 
were  public  readings  out  of  the  Gospels  and  the  generally 
received  Apostolic  Epistles.  The  first  evidence  of  public 
readings  taken  out  of  the  New  Testament  writings,  is  given 
us  by  Justin  who  was  martyred  about  A.  D.  165  : 

"  On  the  da)^  called  the  day  of  the  sun,  all  who  live  in 
the  cities  or  in  the  country,  gather  together  to  one  place, 
and  the  memoirs  of  the  Apostles,  or  the  writings  of  the 
prophets,  are  read,  as  long  as  time  permits." 

(Apol.  I,  67). 

But  no  unprejudiced  reader  can  fail  to  see  that  Justin  re- 
gards the  Old  Testament,  if  not  exclusivel}^  as  the  only  in- 
spired book,  at  least  as  the  rule  by  which  the  truth  of  the 
New  Testament  must  be  determined.  At  the  end  of  the 
second  centurj%  however,  it  is  generally  admitted  that  the 
writings  of  the  New  Testament  were  received  and  read  by 
the  churches  as  having  equal  authority  with  those  of  the  Old 
Te.stament.  That  the  recognition  of  the  inspired  character 
of  the  writings  of  the  New  Testament  was  a  gradual  growth, 
is  certain.  "  The  earliest  trace  of  such  a  co-ordination  of 
the  two  classes  of  books,  ami  at  liie  same  time  of  an  actual 


78  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

collection  of  Apostolic  writings,  is  found  in  the  so-called 
Second  Epistle  of  St.  Peter.  Among  the  ecclesiastical  writ- 
ers Theophilus  of  Antioch,  and  after  him  Irenaeus,  Tertul- 
lian,  and  Clement  of  Alexandria  may  be  regarded  as  the  first 
i  nd  best  known  representatives  of  this  new  tendency,  pro- 
vided it  b2  still  understood  that  always  and  everywhere 
Scripture  and  tradition,  regarded  as  equally  authentic  and 
thoroughly  harmonious  witnesses,  constitute  the  common 
source  of  knowledge  and  rule  of  doctrine."  Theophilus  is 
the  first  to  apply  the  word  "  scripture  "  to  the  New  Testa- 
ment writings. 

Another  fragment  containing  the  names  of  sacred  books 
and  originating  somewhere  near  the  end  of  the  second  cen- 
tury, was  found  and  published  by  Muratori,  This  list  goes 
by  the  name  of  the  Muratonian  canon.  No  one  can  doubt 
that  this  ancient  fragment  has  added  to  our  knowledge  ;  but 
it  is  certain  that  its  value  has  been  overestimated.  The  text 
is  grossly  corrupt  and  defective  ;  and  it  is  believed  that  any 
one  going  to  it  for  confirmation  of  his  own  opinion,  can  un- 
doubtedly find  what  he  seeks.  In  this  fragment  the  Epistle 
of  St.  James,  those  of  St.  Peter,  and  that  to  the  Hebrews 
are  not  found. 

At  the  commencement  of  the  third  century  we  find  the 
churches  of  Asia  Minor,  Alexandria,  and  West  Africa  unani- 
mous in  receiving  as  inspired  writings  the  four  Gospels, 
thirteen  epistles  of  St.  Paul,  one  epistle  of  St.  John,  and  the 
Apocalypse.  It  is  not  at  all  probable,  however,  that  the.se 
churches  accepted  all  these  books  as  possessing  equal  au- 
thority. They  usually  made  of  them  two  separate  collec 
tions.     The  first,  composed  of  the  four  Gosptls,  was  called 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles,  of  Religion.      7i> 

the  Gospel  ;  the  second,  composed  of  the  Epistles,  was 
called  the  Apostle. 

The  spread  of  heresy,  as  we  have  said,  was  the  probable 
cause  which  led  the  orthodox  party  to  collect  together  the 
writings  of  the  Apostles.  For  since  the  heretics  referred  to 
some  one  of  the  Apostles  as  authority  for  whatever  they  ad- 
vanced, tlie  orthodox  party  hoped,  1jy  making  a  collection 
of  Apostolic  writings,  to  have  ample  means  for  proving  the 
untenable  position  of  the  heretics,  by  showing  the  disagree- 
ment of  the  heresy  with  the  Apostle  upon  whom  it  profess- 
edly built.  No  sooner,  however,  was  this  work  undertaken, 
and  parties  discovered  that  their  position  was  not  supported 
by  the  books  or  writings  to  which  they  referred,  than  a 
regular  business  was  made  of  forging  the  names  of  Apostles 
to  writings  made  for  the  occasion.  The  ease  with  which 
this  might  be  done  may  be  seen  when  we  say  "  that  at  no 
time  durmg  the  third  century  did  the  Catholic  church  pos- 
sess a  fixed,  definitely  limited,  and  publicl}'  and  generally 
recognized  catalogue  of  sacred  writings." 

That  critical  scholarship  served  as  the  guide  in  determin- 
ing what  was  and  what  was  not  of  Apostolic  origin,  is  alto- 
gether out  of  the  question.  It  is  by  all  admitted  that  it  did 
not  :  "  Circumstances,  accidents,  even  taste,  and  above  all, 
custom,  little  concealed  in  its  origin,  brought  about  the 
choice."  (Reuss  :  II,  307^ 

"  It  cannot  be  denied  that  the  extent  of  the  canon,  like 
the  order  of  the  sacraments,  was  .settled  by  common  usage  ; 
and  thus  the  testimony  of  Christians  becomes  the  testimony 

of  the  church It  cannot   be    denied    that   the 

canon  was  fixed  gradually."  (Westcott). 


80  Bssaj'S  on   Cod  and  Man, 

The  churches  of  Syria  are  held  to  have  been  the  first  that 
made  public  their  mind  as  to  what  they  thought  was  a  com- 
plete collection  of  Apostolic  writings.  This  was  done  by 
publishing  what  is  known  as  the  Syriac,  or  Pshito  version  of 
the  holy  Scriptures.  Of  this  version  there  are  two  MSS., 
the  one  written  in  the  ancient  Syriac,  the  other  in  the  Nes- 
torian.  The  Pshito  collection  omits  five  books  that  are 
to-da}'  classed  with  the  other  Apostolic  writings, — the  Sec- 
ond and  Third  Epistles  of  St.  John,  the  Second  Epistle  of 
St.  Peter,  the  Epistle  of  St.  Jude,  and  the  Apocalypse. 
The  origin  of  this  version  of  Scriptures  dates  as  far  back  as 
the  beginning  of  the  third  century. 

That  the  canon  was  as  yet  not  definitely  settled  even  far 
on  in  the  fourth  century,  we  are  sure  from  statements 
which  we  gather  from  Eusebius  who  everywhere  expresses 
himself  as  uncertain,  and  the  cour.se  of  tradition  as  waver- 
ing. But  custom  and  tradition  were  always  silently  at 
work  leavening  the  whole  lump  ;  and  after  the  middle  of  the 
fourth  century  the  seven  Catholic  Epistles  were  generally 
received.  The  Apocalypse,  however,  was  still  looked  upon 
with  great  disfavor. 

The  Synod  of  Laodicea,  which  was  convened  about  A.  D. 
360,  was  the  first  which  sought  to  close  the  canon  for  the 
Greek  church,  by  prohibiting  the  public  reading  out  of  any 
book  which  was  not  regarded  by  that  .synod  as  canoni- 
cal. In  the  canon  of  Laodicea  we  do  not  find  the  Apoca- 
lypse. 

The  Western  church  was  also  slowly  at  work  coming  to  a 
decision  as  to  what  should  constitute  the  books  of  the  New 
Testament.     The   chief  actors   in    bringing    the    Western 


A  Philosophical  Iii'juiri/  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.  81 

church  to  decide  this  question,  were  Jerome  and  Au<;ustine, 
of  whom  it  may  be  said  : 

"The  foruier  brought  to  the  criticism  of  the  canon  no 
courage,  the  latter,  no  learning;  and  neither  of  them,  prin- 
ciple or  independence."  (Reuss:  11,323). 
At  Hippo  A.  D.  31»;5,  and  Carthage  A.  D.  3f»7,  Avere  held 
councils  which  set  about  determining  the  canon,  under  the 
leadership  of  those  just  mentioned.  It  is  said  tliat  in  these 
councils  "  it  was  precisely  the  less  critical  view  which 
attained  legal  authority."  That  a  critical  spirit  would 
sometimes  have  profited  the  church,  will  not  be  doubted 
except  by  those  steeped  in  superstition  ;  but  such  a  spirit 
could  not  be  found  in  the  councils  ()f  Hippo  and  Carthage. 
In  proportion  to  the  importance  of  the  contents  of  a  docu- 
ment siiould  its  criticism  be  severe. 

No  document  could  liave  needed  criticism  more,  no  docu- 
ment can  need  criticism  more,  than  that  which  i)urports  to 
be  a  Revelation.  With  the  spread  of  spurious  Apostolic  lit- 
erature, grew  the  difficulty  of  determining  the  genuine  from 
the  forged ;  and  with  the  increasing  bitterness  in  the 
breasts  of  the  rival  factions  in  the  early  church,  grew  the 
increase  in  the  corruptions  of  the  original  documents. 
From  this  we  see  how  great  the  necessity  to  iniidel  as  well 
as  believer  for  a  proi)c'r  investigation  of  Scripture,  is  a  calm, 
unprejudiced,  and  rational  spirit. 

The  canon  of  Scripture,  drawn  up  by  the  councils  of 
Carthage  and  Hippo,  contained  all  the  books  of  tiie  Old 
Testament,  including  the  Apocry[)ha,  and  all  the  disputed 
Epistles. 

In    determining    what    constituted    Holy    Scripture    the 

6 


82  Essays  on  God  und  Man, 

churches  of  the  East  and  West  proceeded  on  different  lines. 
The  Eastern  church  sought  tlie  least  possible,  the  Western 
church  sought  the  most  possible.  The  Eastern  church  was 
governed  by  the  proof  of  Apostolicity,  the  Western  church 
was  governed  I)}'  the  proof  of  custom  and  use.  Hence  the 
different  results. 

After  the  above  named  councils  all  discussions  in  the 
church  as  to  what  constituted  Holy  Scripture,  practically 
ceased.  Tlie  judgment  of  these  councils  representing  cen- 
tral churches,  was  received  by  the  other  churches  as  gener- 
ally binding,  although  in  such  judgment  they  had  neither 
part  nor  lot. 

We  have  now  briefly  sketched  the  settlement  of  the  New 
Testament  canon,  and  have  attempted  to  do  so  with  a  fair 
and  impartial  spirit. 

Knowing  its  history  and  the  many  vicissitudes  which  have 
befallen  it,  the  wonder  is  not  that  we  find  in  tlie  collection  of 
New  Testament  writings  many  corruptions,  but  rather  that 
we  do  not  find  therein  a  great  many  more.  The  history  of 
the  canon  shoidd,  moreover,  teach  us  not  to  draw  hasty 
conclusions  from  disconnected  passages  or  single  texts  of 
Scripture  ;  the  separate  parts  should  be  considered  with  ref- 
erence to  the  whole ;  and  the  whole  of  whatever  [)urports  to 
be  a  Revelation,  should,  and  must,  be  referred  to  the  gen- 
eral and  universal  revelation  of  God  in  nature: 

"  Man,  who  is  the  servant  and  interpreter  of  nature,  can 
act  and  understand  no  further  than  he  has,  either  in  opera- 
tion or  contemplation,  observed  of  the  method  and  order  of 
nature.  Men  have  sought  to  make  a  world  from  their  own 
conceptions,  and  to  draw  from  their  own  minds  all  the  mater- 


APhilosophioal  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   83 

itils  which  they  have  employed  ;  but  if  instead  of  doing  so, 
they  had  consulted  experience  and  observation,  they  would 
have  had  facts  and  not  opinions  to  reason  about,  and  miglit 
have  ultimately  arrived  at  the  knowledge  of  the  laws  which 
govern  the  world."  (Bacon). 

By  comparing  particular  Revelation  with  i)artieuhir,  and 
all  such  so-called  Revelations  with  the  universal  and  contin- 
uous revelation  of  God  in  nature,  man  will  be  far  less 
likely,  while  possessing  and  handling  the  word  of  God,  to 
comprehend  and  declare  the  word  of  man. 

That  scholars  should  suspect  the  genuineness  of  many 
books  of  the  New  Testament,  and,  perhaps,  the  authenticity 
of  man}'-  more,  we  cannot  think  strange.  We  have  already- 
stated  that  for  many  of  its  most  stupendous  assertions,  the 
least  evidence  is  jiresented.  In  addition  to  this,  no  general 
council  has  ever  pronounced  its  judgment  upon  the  received 
books  nor  closed  the  canon.  "With  reference  to  no  less  than 
seven  books,  custom,  tradition,  and  taste,  which  alone 
served  to  bring  the  others  into  general  recognition,  have 
been  variant  and  different. 
Marcion : 

Tlie  canon  of  Marcion  omitted  all  except  the  thirteen 

Epistles  of  St.  Paul,  and  one  Gospel,  probably  that  of  St. 

Luke. 
The  Pshito : 

The  Pshito  omits  the  Second  and  Third  Epistles  of  St. 

John,  the  second  Epistle  of  St.  Peter,  the  Epistle  of  St. 

Jude,  and  the  Apocalypse. 
The  Muratonian : 

The  Muratonian  canon  omits  the  E])istle  of  St.  James,  the 


84  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  and  the  First  and  Second  Epistles 

of  St.  Peter. 
The  Laodicean : 

The  Laodicean  canon  omits  the  Apocalypse. 

These  books  named  as  omitted  are  called  by  the  church 
the  seven  disputed  books.  They  were  recognised,  as  we 
have  seen,  by  the  provincial  councils  of  Carthage  and 
Hippo ;  and  since  then  they  have  been  received  with  the 
other  books  of  the  New  Testament  as  canonical,  "  although 
unsupported  by  an 3^  Greek  authority." 

We  have  said  that  no  general  council  has  ever  closed  the 
canon.  The  Roman  communion  admits  that  the  canon  was 
an  open  question  up  to  the  time  of  the  Council  of  Trent. 
At  that  council  the  question  of  the  canon  "was  discussed ; 
and  fifty- three  representatives  were  audacious  enough  to 
pretend  to  decide  for  the  universal  church  what  should  con- 
stitute the  canon  of  Scripture.  They  adopted  by  a  decree 
all  the  books  we  now  receive  and  the  Apocrypha,  "as 
worthy  in  all  parts  of  equal  veneration."  To  this  decree, 
which  was  made  April  8th.,  1546,  was  appended  a  solemn 
anathema  against  all  ' '  who  should  not  receive  the  entire 
books  with  all  their  parts,  as  sacred  and  canonical." 

The  churches  outside  the  Roman  communion,  care  little 
about  what  the  Roman  church  says  or  decrees  ;  and  the  schol- 
ars of  the  world  care  still  less  what  the  Roman  church  or 
any  other,  or  all  others  combined,  may  say  or  decree  con- 
trary' to  the  God-given  reason  within  the  breast  of  the  reason- 
able man.  The\'^  would  much  rather  die  in  communion  with 
Plato  and  Aristotle  than  with  a  wine-bibbing  and  supersti- 
tious priest,  from  whose  mind  the  goddess,  Reason,  has  long 


A  Philosophical  Inquinj  i)ifo  tlie  Principles  of  Beligion.     85 

since  departed,  and  in  whose  soul  the  lara[)  of  life  has  gone 
out.  Nor  have  we  any  doubt  that  the  inability'  of  the  Chris- 
tian world  to  substantiate  its  exclusive  claims,  will  become 
more  and  more  apparent ;  while  the  demands  for  such  proof, 
coming  from  the  world  of  reason,  will  become  more  and 
more  urgent.  The  day  of  "thus  saith  the  church"  is 
ended.  "Whether  life  be  long  or  sliort,  whether  an  intellect- 
ual sun  around  which  revolve  the  lesser  stars  of  thought,  or 
a  moon  shining  with  borrowed  light;  whether  we  weigh  the 
worlds  and  seek  the  laws  of  nature's  being,  or  reverently 
consider  the  origin,  power,  and  future  of  man, —  the  lamp 
of  reason  remains  the  like  necessity  to  all.  Let  us  beware 
lest  we  permit  ourselves  or  others  to  make  this  light  within 
us  darkness:  for  if  that  light  be  put  out,  how  great  is  our 
darkness!  No  darkness  is  so  great  as  the  darkness  of  that 
soul  in  whose  mental  firmament  sun,  moon,  and  stars  are 
buried  in  the  blackness  of  ecclesiastical  dogma ;  but  where 
the  light  of  reason  shines,  there  sin  and  darkness  flee.  All 
the  beauty  and  harmony  of  nature,  all  the  grand  results  of 
cosmic  evolution,  are  but  the  work  of  Universal  Reason. 
Not  with  hands,  but  with  reason,  does  God  perform  his 
wondrous  work: 

"7''<v  Travra  x(i<;/j.O'^  tzotr^mv  6  driindunyo^  <iu  ytnfsvj  a)J.a  hiyio — 
The  Creator  formed  the  cosmos  not  with  hands  but  with 
reason."  (Hermes  Trismegistus). 

Nor  may  we  fail  to  see  that  the  highest  work  of  the 
human  mind  is  the  use  of  reason  in  the  discover}-  of  that 
many-named  yet  un-namable  God,  many-formed  3'et  form- 
less God,  energizing  the  universe  as  its  soul,  and  manifest- 
ing himself  in  an  infinite  variety  of  reasonable  forms,  each 


86  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

of  which  is  clothed  about  with  the  garments  of  beauty  and 
harmony : 

Zsu?  TZfiwTo^  ye'^iTOj  Zzui  ixrzuTO'i  ariyf/.tpau'/oii : 
Ztu<s  xs<pa).rjj  Zeu<i  jisffffa:    Aw^  S"  ex  -avra  rsroxrat. 
ZzU<}  ~uO/j.rjV  yacY/?  rs  xat  oupaxiu  aGT£pot'^To<s. 
Zeu-;  apar^j  j'sviro,  Zzo^  ap.lipozof;  £-Xz.zo  vu<>.(fi]. 
Ztu<i  TTxiCYj  ravrwi'j  Zew}  axap.arou  —U'xk^  ^'f'!'"^- 
Zsu^  -ovTou  pt^a,  Zews  r^Xt.u<i  rj8z  tTi?.7f>rj. 
Ztoq  jSaffiXzW},  Zzug  apyo<?  a-a'^ziuv  apyixBpau'^o^ : 
lta/Ta<i  yap  xpu(/'a^  auO'.^  (fao'i  £9  ~o/.uyr/};g 
E^  hprj<;  xpad'.r^g  ayz'^vyx.azo^  pspptpd  pt'^w^  — 

Zeus  is  the  first,  Zeus,  the  bright-shining  Zeus,  is  the  last. 

Zeus  is  the  head,  Zeus  the  middle ;  from  Zeus  all  things 
jDroceed. 

Zeus  the  foundation  of  the  earth  and  bright-starry  firma- 
ment. 

Zeus  is  mighty ;  Zeus  sails  the  sea  as  a  heavenly  U3'm])h. 

Zeus  the  breath  of  all,  Zeus  the  rushing  up  of  the  quench- 
less fire. 

Zeus  the  root  of  ocean,  Zeus  the  sun  and  moon. 

Zeus  is  the  king,  Zeus,  the  bright-shining  Zeus,  is  ruler 
of  all. 

For  all  persons  concealing,  again  from  his  sacred  bosom 
does 

He  bring  them  forth  into  the  jo^'-giving  flame,  undergo- 
ing, 

As  it  were,  the  pains  of  parturition." 

(Orpheus:  Quoted  by  Aristotle:  I)e  Mun.  7,  4). 


A  Philosophical  IiKjuinj  into  the  J^rinciples  of  Religiov.     H7 

(b):     ITS  CHARACTER: 

A  few  words  on  the  character  of  the  New  Testament 
writings. 

Of  one  thing  1  myself  am  satisfied,  that  God  tills  the 
universe.  Force  is  the  measure  and  the  ultimate  of  mat- 
ter ;  the  measure  and  the  ultimate  of  all  existences.  God  is 
universally  Extended  Conscious  Force.  He  fdls  the  whole. 
This  seems  to  make  reasonable  the  supposition  of  Mr.  Wal- 
lace, that  the  whole  universe  may  be  only  the  will  of  One 
Supreme  Intelligence.  There  can  be  no  point  in  space,  nor 
spirit  essence,  nor  atom  of  matter^  which  is  not  full  of 
deity.     And  so  cried  out  the  great  soul  of  Xenophanes : 

Looking  to  the  whole  heavens,  he  said  God  was  the  one 
existence." 

At  all  times  have  the  profoundest  scholars  been  led  to 
similar  conclusions :  ii>-  the  highest  sense  are  we  forced  to 
see  in  God,  though  forever  unknown  and  invisible,  the  life 
apart  from  which  nothing  can  exist,  the  goodness  without 
which  no  finite  being  can  bo  good.  Whatever  is  must  be  in 
him  who  is  the  One  and  True  Universal  Substance.  In  him, 
indeed,  is  universal  life  united  with  eternal  duration ;  and 
in  this  Eternal  and  Universal  Life,  have  we  our  being: 

Taura  ynrj  /.a',  -zpt  thuu  dtw/otifTOai^  du>a;i£C  /jirv  (yvro^  t'^yopo- 
rarou,  /.a/./.;',  os  tu~in~z(TTaziiu^  !^oj7j  os  aOavazou^  '^P^~Ti  ''-  yi>fJ-'t-<T- 
Tou,  diOTi  -aiTrj  0>r/T^  tpuffti  yivoiiv^ixs  adttuprjTH'f  m~'  aurtuv  rwv 
epywv  Otiojit'.zai.  .  .  .  ha/.()u;iiV  S;  aurov  xat  Zrjva  /.at  J;a, 
TtapaXXrj^.iO'}  ypujixzxn  roi^^  o-^ofxarT:-^,  m^  av  £.'  ksyoiiizv  dt  vv 
^w/iey  —  It  is  necessar}'  that  we  should  think  of  God  as  a 


88  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

being  most  mighty  in  power,  most  glorious  in  beauty,  of 
deathless  existence,  most  excellent  in  virtue,  and  though 
unseen  to  any  finite  creature,  seen  through  his  works. 
We  call  him  Zena  and  Dia,  using  these  names  indifferently, 
as  if  we  would  express  the  idea  that  through  him  we  live, 
and  have  our  being,"  (Aristotle:  De  Mundo,  6,  26  ;  7,  1). 
Being  forced  to  believe  that  God  is  thus  everywhere 
essentiall}'  present,  that  he  fills  to  fulness  the  awful  uni- 
verse, I  cannot  but  admit  that  he  pervades  the  mind  of 
man.  I,  therefore,  see  no  difficult}^  in  believing  in  inspira- 
tion. There  never  was  a  good  man,  not  more  or  less 
inspired ;  nor  a  good  book  written,  not  more  or  less  the 
result  of  inspiration.  God  dwelling  in  man,  he  is  mani- 
fested in  each  man  in  proportion  as  each  is  moved  by  the 
divine  impulse,  or  obeys  the  divine  drawings.  The  capac- 
ity of  man  for  this  indwelling  of  God^  and  his  readiness  to 
receive  divine  impressions,  or  yield  to  these  divine  drawings, 
depend  on  the  age  in  which  he  lives,  the  state  of  civiliza- 
tion, and  the  quantity  and  quality  of  his  mind.  The  divine 
essence,  the  Infinitely  diffused  Spirit,  though  universally 
present,  is  not  universally  felt.  It  is  revealed  to  that  soul 
only  whose  spirit  motion  acts  in  harmony  with  the  motion  of 
tlie  Infinite.  Different  men  are  differently  qualified  for 
receiving,  interpreting,  and  carrying  out,  the  divine  im- 
pulses within  them.  Believing  tliat  all  men,  especially  those 
whose  work  it  is  to  point  and  direct  the  human  soul  to  its 
God,  are  more  or  less  inspired ,  I  find  no  difllculty  in 
accepting  sacred  books  as  inspired  writings ;  and  believing 
that  man's  readiness  to  hear  and  correctly  interpret  the 
divine  voice  within  him,  depends  upon  the  righteousness  of 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.     89 

bis  character,  and  the  sensitiveness  of  his  nature,  I  see  no 
difficulty   in    accepting  Christ  as  the  perfect  man,   iu   all 
things  yielding  to  the  divine  impulse;   in  purity  and  truth- 
fulness, the  express  image  of  the  Eternal  God  ;  in  life  and 
doctrine,    the    way     to    virtue,     happiness,    and    heaven. 
I  know  that  Christ  taught  the  truth,  not  because  he  is  said 
to  be  the   Son    of   God ;   but  because    what   he  taught   is 
in  agreement  with  the  teachings  of  all  the  great  and  noble 
souls   who   have   in   every   land   and    age   sought  to   raise 
humanit}^  into  a  higher  and  holier  life.     But  this  evidence 
sufficient  of  itself  to  establish  the  truth  of  Christ's  doctrine, 
is  by  no  means  sufficient  to  establish  our  faith  in  Christ  as 
God.     The  falsity  of  Christ's  teaching  would  give  the  lie  to 
human  nature  in  all  its  higher  forms  of  development ;  no 
less  does  belief  in  his  divinity  conflict  with  all  our  ideas  con- 
cerning the  nature  of  the  Universal  Presence,  subverting  all 
natural   ordci",    contradicting  all   human    expei'ience.     The 
evidence  for  the  truth  of  Christ's  teaching  is  conclusive ; 
the  evidence  for  asserting  that  Christ  is  God,  is  very  unsat- 
isfactory.    If  Christ  was  immaculately  conceived,  if  he  per- 
formed the  stupendous  works  attributed  to  him,  if  he  arose 
from  the  dead ;  it  is  reasonable  to  believe  that  he  is  God, 
or,  at  least,  a  superhuman  being.     Such  a  belief,  however, 
would  not  necessaril}'  follow  these  assumptions.     It  cannot 
be  denied  that  the  Infinite  One  might  perform  all  these  mir- 
acles through  and  upon  a  human  being.     But  if  the  belief  in 
the  Incarnation,  Immaculate  Conception,  and  Resiurection, 
could  be  established ;  there  certainly  would  be  much  less 
doubt  on   the   question  of  the  deity  of  Christ  than  prevails 
to-day.     Christians  should  not  forget  that  the  simple  asser- 


90  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

tion  of  the  reality  of  these  wonderful  occurrences,  does  not 
prove  the  reality  of  any  of  them.  To  illustrate  let  us  give 
a  few  examples. 

"  Je  suis  Nabu-kudur-usur.  .  .  .Le  fils  aine  de 
Nabu-palusur  roi  de  Bab-llu,  Moi!  Le  dieu  Bel,  lui-meme, 
m'a  cree,  le  dieu  Marduk  qui  m'a  engendre,  a  depose  lui- 
meme  le  germe  de  ma  vie  dans  le  sein  de  ma  mere  —  I  am 
Nabu-kudur-usur,  the  oldest  son  of  Nabu-pal-usur,  king  of 
Bab-llu,  I  myself!  The  god  Bel  himself  created  me,  and 
the  god  Murduk  who  begot  me,  deposited  the  germ  of  my 
life  in  the  bosom  of  ra}^  mother." 

(Menant's  Translation  of  the  Bab.  Inscription.) 

"It  is  a  tradition  among  the  Mongols  that  Alung  Goa 
bore  three  sons  by  a  spirit.  And  among  the  existing  in- 
habitants of  Mangaia,  it  is  the  tradition  that  the  lovely  Ina- 
ani-vai  had  two  sons  by  the  great  god  Tangaroa." 

(Spencer:   Ecclesiastical  Insti.  702). 

"  He  takes  Mahidasa  to  be  an  incarnation  of  Narayana, 
proceeding  from  Visala,  the  son  of  Abga. " 

"  The  incarnate  Self  assumes  various  forms,  in  accord- 
ance with  his  deeds." 

(Sacred  Books  of  the  East,  I,  intro.  95  ;  XV,  258). 

"The  Grand  Lama,  personally  worsliiped  by  the  Tar- 
tars, is  called  ]>y  them  "  God  the  Father." 

(Spencer:  Sociology  II,  161). 

"The  perception  has  come  and  is  coming  to  more  minds 
than  ever  to-day  that  there  never  was  any  more  miracles  or 
signs  or  Avonders,  never  any  more  conversing  of  God  with 
man,  never  any  more  Garden  of  Eden,  or  Fall  of  Adam,  or 
thunders  of  Sinai   or  ministering  angels,  never  any   more 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.  91 

revelation,  tluin  there  is  to-day.  Tlie  perception  of  religion 
as  a  miraculous  scheme  for  niun's  redemption  interpolated 
into  history,  God's  original  design  with  reference  to  man 
having  miscarried,  is  entirely  undermined  and  overthrown 
by  tlic  perception  of  the  unity  and  consistency  of  nature  as 
revealed  by  science  wliich  looks  upon  religion  as  belonging 
to  the  sphere  of  the  natural ;  it  is  the  legitimate  outcome  of 
man's  moral  nature  ;  the  term  that  best  expresses  the  com- 
plete development  and  flowering  of  all  his  faculties.  To 
define  it  in  the  guarded  terms  of  Princi[)al  TuUoch  as  "an 
inner  power  of  divine  m3'stery  awakening  the  conscience," 
is  to  malie  it  something  exterior  to  man.  This  view  the 
world  has  clung  to,  but  it  must  go  —  is  going.  What  a  seal 
of  authentication  is  put  upon  it  by  the  myth  of  the  resur- 
rection of  Jesus!"       (John  Burrows  in  Pop.  Sci.  Monthly). 

Whatever  we  may  think  of  the  words  of  this  writer,  we 
may  be  sure  that  they  fairly  express  the  opinion  of  the 
scientific  world,  and  the  sentiment  of  the  age. 

As  to  the  miracles  by  which  the  Christian  church  pro- 
fesses to  substantiate  its  faith  in  the  deity  of  Christ,  I  can- 
not do  better  than  to  quote  the  following: 

"  With  the  exception  of  a  small  minority  of  the  priests  of 
the  Catholic  church,  a  great  incredulity  on  the  subject  of 
miracles  now  underlies  the  opinion  of  almost  all  educated 
men.  .  .  .  The  common  attitude  towards  miracles  is 
not  that  of  doubt,  of  hesitation,  of  discontent  with  the  ex- 
isting evidence,  but  rather  of  absolute,  derisive,  and  even 
unexamining  incredulity.  .  .  Miracles  cease  when  men 
cease  to  believe  and  to  expect  them.  .  .  .  The  whole 
histor}'  of  physical  science  is  one  continual  revelation  of  the 


92  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

reign  of  law.  .  .  .  Christianity  floated  into  the  Eoman 
Empire  on  the  wave  of  credulity  that  brought  with  it  a  long 
train  of  Oriental  superstitions  and  legends.  .  .  In  its 
moral  aspects  it  was  broadly  distinguished  from  the  systems 
around  it,  but  its  miracles  were  accepted  by  both  friend 
and  foe  as  the  ordinary  accompaniments  of  religious  teach- 
ing. .  .  In  the  ages  when  the  Roman  Empire  was  con- 
verted all  sound  and  discriminating  historical  investigation 
of  the  evidence  of  the  early  miracles  was  impossible,  nor 
was  any  large  use  made  of  these  miracles  as  proofs  of  the 
religion."  (Lecky:  Hist.  Europ.  Morals). 

"  To  sum  up  the  matter,  it  appears  that  while  the  ante- 
cedent improbability  of  miracles  has  been  enormously  in- 
creased by  the  constant  and  concurrent  proofs  of  the 
permanence  of  the  laws  of  Nature,  the  evidence  for  miracles 
when  dispassionately  examined,  is  altogether  insufficient  to 
establish  even  an  ordinary  fact.  St.  Augustine  describes  in 
detail  many  wonderful  miracles,  including  resurrections 
from  the  dead,  which  he  said  had  been  wrought  to  his  own 
knowledge,  within  his  own  diocese  of  Hip[)o,  by  the  relics  of 
the  martyr  Stephen.  In  fact  he  says  that  the  number  of 
miracles  thus  wrought  within  the  last  two  years  was  at  least 
seventy.  This  testimony  is  far  more  precise  than  any  for 
the  Gospel  miracles,  for  it  comes  from  a  well  known  man  of 
high  character,  who  was  on  the  spot  at  the  time."  (Laing). 
In  proof  of  the  New  Testament  miracles,  "  We  have  a 
few  exceptional  instances  attested  by  evidence  not  of  a 
character  to  warrant  belief  in  any  facts  in  the  smallest  de- 
gree unusual,  or  improbable." 

(J.  S.  Mill:   Essay  on  Theism).^ 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  ihe  Principles  of  Religion.  93 

We  should  not  be  surprised  at  the  course  of  many  theolo- 
gians and  theological  i)rofessors,  nor  wonder  why  the}'  can 
draw  invalid  conclusions  from  their  own  premises,  or  lay 
down  as  accepted  a  basis  of  reasoning  which  no  reasonable 
and  independent  mind  would  for  a  moment  admit.  We 
should  say  what  a  speaker  is  represented  by  'J'hucydides  as 
saying:  "Do  not  be  discouraged  at  their  words,  seeing 
they  have  a  reason  for  thus  doing."  And  yet  it  is  hard  to 
conceive  a  good  man,  not  charged  witli  ignorance,  doing 
what  many  are  known  to  do,  building  on  sand  ;  while  at  the 
same  time,  telling  the  ignorant  that  they  are  building  on 
rock.  They  make  much  of  little  and  little  of  much.  It  is 
a  common  place  argument  with  such  that  no  man  ever  lived 
as  good  as  Jesus,  and  that  therefore  He  is  God.  Now, 
granting  the  truth  of  this  assertion,  the  inference  does  not 
necessarily  follow :  for  there  is  no  comparison  between  the 
finite  and  the  infinite,  between  God  and  man.  Even  if 
Jesus  was  better  than  the  whole  combined  goodness  of  his 
nation,  it  would  not  follow  therefore  that  He  was  God. 
Moreover,  it  must  be  remembered  that  countless  numbers 
of  men,  living  and  dead,  have  been  and  are  unable  to  find 
any  suflScient  proof  for  the  assertion  that  no  living  being 
ever  equalled  Jesus  in  i)urity  and  truth.  Of  such  men, 
none,  perhaps,  speaks  more  conservatively  than  the  truth- 
loving  Mill  who  sa^'s : 

"  But  about  the  life  and  sayings  of  Jesus  there  is  a  stamp 
of  personal  originality  combined  with  profundity  of  insight, 
which  if  we  abandon  the  idle  expectation  of  finding  scien- 
tific precision  where  something  very  different  was  aimed  at, 
must  place  the  prophet  of   Nazareth,  even  in  the  estimation 


94  Essays  on  God  and  Alan^ 

of  those  who  have  no  belief  in  his  inspiration,  in  the  very 
first  rank  of  the  men  of  sublime  genius  of  whom  our  species 
can  boast.  When  this  pre-eminent  genius  is  combined  with 
the  qualities  of  probably  the  greatest  moral  reformer,  and 
martyr  to  that  mission,  who  ever  existed  upon  earth,  religion 
cannot  be  said  to  have  made  a  bad  choice  in  pitching  on  this 
man  as  the  ideal  representative  and  guide  of  humanity ;  nor 
even  now,  would  it  be  eas}-,  even  for  an  unbeliever,  to  find 
a  better  translation  of  the  rule  of  virtue  from  the  abstract 
into  the  concrete,  than  to  endeavor  so  to  live  that  Christ 
would  approve  our  life.  When  to  this  w-e  add  that,  to  the 
conception  of  the  rational  skeptic,  it  remains  a  possibility 
that  Christ  actually  was  what  he  supposed  himself  to  be  — 
not  God,  for  he  never  made  the  smallest  pretension  to  that 
character  and  would  probabl}^  have  thought  such  a  preten- 
sion as  blasphemous  as  it  seemed  to  the  men  who  condemned 
him  —  but  a  man  charged  with  a  special,  express  and  unique 
commission  from  God  to  lead  mankind  to  truth  and  virtue  ; 
we  may  well  conclude  that  the  influence  of  religion  on  the 
character  which  will  remain  after  rational  criticism  has  done 
its  utmost  against  the  evidence  of  religion,  are  well  worth 
preserving,  and  that  what  they  lack  in  direct  strength  as 
compared  with  those  of  a  firmer  belief,  is  more  than  com- 
pensated by  the  greater  truth  and  rectitude  of  the  morality 
they  sanction."  (Theism,  254-255). 

With  the  history  of  the  church  before  us,  its  jarrings  and 
its  quarrelings  about  the  nature  and  person  of  Christ ;  with 
the  adverse  judgment  of  men  the  highest,  brightest,  and  best, 
in  all  ages  and  countries, —  it  were  surely  vain  and  foolish  in 
us  to  assert  that  the  evidence  we  have  that  Christ  is  God,  is 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.  95 

conclusive,  or  even  satisfactory.  Believe  in  his  divinity  we 
may ;  to  prove  that  divinity  we  are  totally  unable.  The 
knowledge  of  these  things  should  make  us,  in  the  words  of 
Canon  Freeniantle,  "  Much  more  cautious  in  framing  dogma 
about  his  divinity."  Nor  should  we  forget  that,  after  all, 
such  belief  is  not  of  the  essence  of  the  teachings  of  Christ, 
lie  came  to  establish  in  the  hearts  of  men,  not  the  worshi[) 
of  himself,  but  that  of  the  One  God  and  Father  over  all. 
For  myself,  partly  through  education,  partly  through  habit, 
partly  through  inertia,  and  partly  through  the  evidence  such 
as  it  is,  I  do  not  den}-  the  divinity  of  Christ ;  but  I  do  protest 
against  the  making  belief  in  his  divinit}'  a  condition  of  salva- 
tion, knowing  as  I  do  the  total  inadequacy  of  the  evidence  we 
have  for  establishing  it.  Wliutever  be  my  own  belief  I  tliink 
as  much  of  the  followers  of  Arius,  Socinus,  Priestly,  Parker, 
Channing,  and  Clarke,  as  of  those  of  the  dogmatic  Athan- 
asius,  or  the  persecuting  Calvin.  In  each  and  every  case  he 
tiiat  liveth  as  Christ  lived,  is  he  that  God  the  Father  loves. 
Nor  while  I  affirm  my  faith  and  hope  in  Christ  must  it  be 
supposed  that  I  accept  as  his  words  all  he  is  reported  to  have 
said.  As  he  said  much  that  has  never  been  reported,  so 
without  doubt  has  he  been  reported  as  saying  not  a  little 
that  he  never  said.  While  I  believe  the  Bible  is  the  word  of 
God,  I  do  not  believe  that  it  is  literally  inspired ;  nor  that 
our  understanding  of  the  Bible  to-day,  is  what  it  will  be  in 
a  hundred  years  hence.  In  reading  the  Bible  we  should  use 
our  reason;  seek  the  aid  of  science,  literature,  and  art; 
seek  the  aid  of  a  cultivated  mind.  Thus  aided  we  shall  be 
much  less  likely  to  call  evil  good,  or  good  evil.  The  dark 
spots  on  the  Bible,  and  there  are  very  many,  will  become 


96  EssoT/s  on  God  and  JUcni, 

more  and  more  visible ;  for  our  eyes  being  opened  by  the 
immanent  Spirit  of  the  God  of  nature,  the  light  of  the  Bible 
will  break  upon  us  in  a  flood  of  eternal  day. 

Amidst  all  the  difficulties  arising  from  the  cares  of  life  and 
the  mysteries  within  and  without,  the  revelations  of  the  uni- 
versally indwelling  God  call  upon  us  not  to  live  an  idle  life, 
not  to  waste  a  fleeting  moment,  to  do  whatever  our  hands 
find  to  do  with  our  might  For  all  of  us  the  sands  in  life's 
hour-glass  are  fast  falling,  eternity's  tide  is  fast  rising,  the 
angry  waters  engulfing.  How  soon  shall  they  bear  us  away. 
Poor  struggling  soul,  tossed  on  the  breakers  of  eternity,  how 
wildly  thy  hands  are  thrown  up !  Away  art  thou  borne ; 
the  distance  between  us  increases  ;  the  darkness  is  gloom ;  I 
see  thee  no  more.  Did  the  surging  billows  of  death  o'ercome 
thee?  or  wert  thou  borne  to  the  long-looked-for  island  of 
rest? 

"  To  the  island- valley  of  Avilion. 
Where  falls  not  rain,  or  hail,  or  any  snow. 
Nor  ever  wind  blows  loudly  ;  but  it  lies 
Deep-meadowed,  happy,  fair  with  orchard  lawns 
And  bowery  hollows  crowned  with  summer  sea, 
Where  thou  shalt  heal  thee  of  thy  grievous  wound." 
After  all,  this  problem  must  be  personally  solved.     But, 
we  arc  certain,  he  alone  shall  solve  it  well,  who  makes  the 
most  of  life. 

c:         CHRISTIANITY     COMPARED     WITH     OTHER 

RELIGIONS, 
(a):     ITS    EXCLUSIVE    CLAIMS    NOT   ADMITTED. 
I  have  already  stated  that  as  we  leave  the  world  of  posi- 
tive science  or  thought  and  enter  that  based  on  the  miracu- 


A.  Philosophical  Itiqalru  into  the  Principles  of  Relifjion.  97 

lous,  the  scientific  world  in  general  hesitate  and,  almost  to  a 
man,  refuse  to  enter.  Scientists  willingly  admit  that  religion 
expresses  some  eternal  fact ;  but  they  will  not  admit  that 
the  expression  of  this  fact  belongs  exclusively  to  Cliristian- 
ity.  And  as  Cliristians  in  general  regard  as  false,  or  of  the 
devil,  every  non-Christian  system  of  faith,  scientists  not  find- 
ing Christianity'  in  doctrine  or  origin  essentiall^-^  different  from 
other  faiths,  refuse  their  assent  to  any  as  being  a  divine  rev- 
elation. Darwin,  who  wasoneof  the  most  moderate  writers, 
distinctly  asserts  his  disbelief  in  a  revelation ;  Strauss  de- 
clares that  the  scientific  world  is  non-Christian ;  Schopen- 
hauer regards  as  ridiculous  the  exclusive  claim  of  the 
Christian  church  to  a  divine  Revelation  ;  and  Spencer  asserts 
his  disbelief  thus :  '*  Nor  do  parallelism  fail  us  when  we  turn 
to  the  more  developed  form  of  the  Hebrew  religion.  That 
the  story  of  a  god-descended  person  should  be  habitually 
spoken  of  by  Christians  as  though  it  were  special  to  their 
religion,  is  strange  considering  their  familiarity  with  stories 
of  god-descended  persons  among  the  Greeks  ....  If 
these  numerous  parallelisms  between  the  Christian  religion 
and  other  religions,  do  not  prove  likeness  of  origin,  and  de- 
velopment, then  the  implication  is  that  a  complete  simulation 
of  the  natural  by  the  super-natural  has  been  deliberately 
devised  to  deceive  those  who  examine  critically  what  they 
are  taught.  Ai)pearances  have  been  arranged  for  the  pur- 
pose of  misleading  sincere  inquirers,  that  they  ma\'  be  eter- 
nally damned  for  seeking  the  truth. ' ' 

(Ecclesiastical  Institutions,  703). 

Says  Prof.  Tj'ndall:     "As  an  ancient  book,  claiming  the 

n»ame  origin  as  other  books,  the  Old  Testament  is  without  a 

7 


98  Essays  on  God  cuid  Man, 

rival;  but  its  imnatunil   exaltation  provokes  recoil  and  re- 
jection."    (In  the  '' Nineteenth  Century"  for  Nov.,  1880). 

"  There  is  no  evidence,"  says  Mill,  "  for  a  Revelation  but 
insufficient  for  proof,  and  amounting  to  the  lower  degrees  of 
probability;  the  whole  domain  of  the  super-natural  is  re- 
moved from  the  region  of  belief  to  that  of  simple  hope." 

(Essays  on  Religion). 

Sa3's  Laing:  "  The  creed  of  the  Christian  church  must  be 
transformed  or  die."     (Mod.  Science  and  Mod.  Thought). 

Mr.  Huxley  expresses  his  unbelief  thus:  "  With  respect 
to  immortality,  as  physical  science  states  this  problem,  it 
seems  to  stand  thus :  Is  there  an}'  means  of  knowing  whether 
the  series  of  states  of  consciousness,  which  have  been  causally 
associated  for  three-score  years  and  ten  with  the  arrange- 
ment and  movement  of  innumerable  millions  of  successively 
different  material  molecules,  can  be  continued,  in  like  asso- 
ciation, with  some  substance  which  has  not  the  properties  of 
matter  and  force?  If  any  bod}-  can  answer  that  question 
he  is  just  the  man  I  want  to  see.  If  he  says  that  conscious- 
ness cannot  exist  except  in  relation  of  cause  and  effect  with 
certain  organic  molecules,  I  must  ask  liow  he  knows  that ; 
and  if  he  says  it  can,  I  must  put  the  same  question.  And 
I  am  afraid  like  jesting  Pilate,  I  shall  not  think  it  worth 
while  to  wait  for  an  answer."  (Fortnightly  Review). 

While  almost  all  the  whole  scientific  world  stands  more  or 
less  on  this  Agnostic  platform,  the  great  body  of  scholarh/ 
theologians  follow  suit  in  rejecting  the  Scriptures  as  literally 
inspired,  and  put  upon  them  a  rationalistic  interpretation. 
It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  any  man  who  can  accept  the 
literal  teachings  of  Scripture  gives  undeniable  proof  of  his 


A  Philosopliiral  Inquirij  into  the  Frfnciples  of  lieliijion.   99 

ignorance  of  the  teachings  of  Nature,  an;l,  therefore,  of 
Nature's  God.  Tiie  disooveries  of  science  are  no  more  nor 
less  than  divine  revelation  ;  they  are  the  teachings  of  Nature, 
they  are  the  true  word  of  God.  To  this  sensuous,  objective, 
positive,  demonstrative,  and  universal  word  of  God  must 
any  special,  unproved,  unprovable,  supposed,  word  of  God 
give  way.  The  work  of  the  true  Christian  scholar  is  to  seek 
under  the  letter  of  Scripture  that  deeper,  more  univi  rsal, 
revelation  of  God  in  Clirist,  and  to  reconcile  it  with  the  re- 
velation of  God  in  nature.  So  far  as  the  Christian  churcii 
succeeds  in  doing  this,  will  she  probably  be  a  force  in  mould- 
ing the  thought  of  the  age ;  so  far  as  she  fails,  will  she  be 
winked  and  scoffed  at,  however  much  noise  she  may  keep. 

The  great  achievements  of  science  during  the  Victorian 
era,  are  the  discovery  of  the  two  general  principles,  now  by 
scientists  universally  admitted, —the  first  being  the  law  of 
the  Conservation  of  Force,  the  second  being  the  principle 
of  Evolution.  The  law  of  the  Conservation  of  Force  is 
another  way  of  expressing  the  fact  that  force  is  persistent. 
The  principle  that  force  is  persistent  is  equivalent  to  saying 
that  the  total  amount  of  energ}'  in  the  universe  is  invariable, 
that  it  can  neither  be  increased  nor  diminished.  In  general 
terms  it  is  certain  that  this  principle  was  believed  and 
taught  by  the  ancient  philosophers.     Says  Aristotle : 

"i-l/^J.a  aoy>a7((v  z.'>ij<T.'v  vj  yv^zaOo.  ij  ifOufn^-ja'.:  an  yap  r^'j  — 
It  is  impossible  that  energy  should  either  be  produced  or 
destroyed:  for  it  is  eternal."  (Met.  VI,  6,  1). 

The  principle  of  the  Conservation  of  Energ}^  is  thus 
defined  by  that  late  able  phj'sicist,  Clerk  Maxwell:  "The 
total  energy  of  any  body  or  S3'stem  of  bodies  is  a  quantity 


100  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

wliieh  can  neither  be  increased  nor  diminished  by  any 
mutual  action  of  such  bodies,  though  it  may  be  trans- 
formed into  any  one  of  the  forms  of  which  energy  is  sus- 
ceptible." We  may  not  doubt  that  the  ancient  philosophers 
had  some  slight  knowledge  of  this  principle ;  but  we  are 
just  as  certain  that  as  a  working  hypothesis  of  universal 
application  whose  truth  has  been  practically  demonstrated,  it 
may  be  said  to  be  one  of  the  great  discoveries  of  the  Victor- 
ian era.  On  the  subjects  of  Evolution  and  the  Conserva- 
tion of  Force,  no  clearer  or  more  correct  presentation  of  the 
rights  of  ancients  and  moderns  can  be  found  than  tl^ at  given 
in  a  few  words  by  Huxley:  "Each  of  these  was  foreshad- 
owed, more  or  less  distinctly,  in  former  periods  of  the  his- 
tory of  science  ;  and,  so  far  is  either  from  being  the  out- 
come of  purely  inductive  reasoning,  that  it  would  be  hard  to 
overrate  the  influence  of  metaphysical,  and  even  of  theologi- 
cal, considerations  upon  their  development.  The  peculiar 
merit  of  our  epoch  is  that  it  has  shown  how  these  hypothe- 
ses connect  a  vast  number  of  seemingly  independent  par- 
tial generalisations  ;  that  it  has  given  them  that  precision  of 
expression  which  is  necessary  for  their  exact  verification ; 
and  that  it  has  practically  proved  their  value  as  guides  to 
the  discovery  of  truth." 

(The  Reign  of  Queen  Victoria,  II,  340). 
The  principle  of  Evolution  is,  in  some  form  or  other, 
accepted  b}^  the  whole  scientific  world.  This  principle  has 
simplified  and  unified  the  whole  operation  of  Nature.  It 
gives  us  one  substance  extending  under  various  forms  and 
modifications  throughout  the  whole  cosmos.  These  various 
:torras  and  modifications  of  the  one  unknown  and  universal 


A  Philosophical  Iixjuir;/  into  thp  Principles  of  Relicjion.     101 

prineii)le,  arc  known  to  us  as  elements  ;  Ijut  liidden,  unseen, 
and  unsearchable,  is  the  one  and  same  cosmic  element, 
everywhere  present,  and  everywhere  persistent.  This  com- 
mon substance  is  acted  u[)on,  and  energized,  by  One  Force, 
Unknown,  Unknowable,  Immutable,  Eternal,  and  Rational. 
With  this  Force  there  is  no  shadow  of  turning  nor  variation  ; 
it  is  the  "same,  yesterday,  to-da\',  and  forever  "  In  this 
Force  do  all  things,  whether  material  or  spirtual,  exist  and 
have  their  being ;  and  in  the  action  of  this  Force  there  can 
be  no  break  nor  departure.  All  its  varied  manifestations 
are  but  the  uniform,  though  apparently  changeful,  opera- 
tions of  One  Eternal  and  Infinite  Volition.  Here  reigns 
Law  Universal,  Eternal,  and  Harmonious.  Evolution  is 
but  a  name  for  the  method  of  the  action  of  this  Universal, 
and  Immutable  Reason  upon  the  universe  of  mind  and  mat- 
ter. First  the  atom,  then  tlie  molecule,  then  the  aggrega- 
tion, then  the  world  formative,  finally  the  world  formed. 
First  the  life-endowed  protoplasm,  then  the  germ,  then  the 
seed,  then  the  leaf,  then  the  flower  complete.  First  the 
aeons  of  chaos,  then  the  aeons  of  formative  and  forming 
matter,  then  the  aeons  of  the  lowest  forms  of  vegetable  and 
animal  life,  then  the  aeons  of  the  higher  forms  of  vegetable 
and  animal  life,  then  the  re?gn  of  reason.  First  the  intelH- 
gence  of  the  lowest  forms  of  life,  tlien  of  the  mere  brute, 
then  of  the  first  man  dimly  discerning  the  powers  around  him, 
then  of  the  more  developed  man  living  in  society,  then  of 
him  examining  the  operations  of  the  powers  around  him, 
then  of  liini  who  sees  behind  the  world  of  matter,  the  world 
of  mind,  and  God  the  soul  of  all. 

Since  this  building  up  of  the  cosmos  is  but  the  i)rogress 


102  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

of  the  One  Eternal,  and  Immutable  Volition,  nature  can 
show  no  breaks  in  the  chain  of  causation,  no  departures 
from  pliysical  laws,  no  special  creations.  The  sun  does  not 
stand  still  at  the  bidding  of  Joshua,  nor  does  the  Infinite 
One  become  a  sculptor  to  form  of  a  lump  of  cla^^  a  perfect 
man. 

Different  faiths  are  but  different  branches  of  the  same 
tree.  The  tree  is  humanity,  the  vital  force  is  God.  Every 
particle  of  each  branch  thrills  at  the  Vital  Presence,  and  the 
branch  itself  sways  hither  and  thither  at  the  pressure  of  the 
Universal  Breath.  The  more  favorable  the  position  of  the 
branch  in  relation  to  the  tree  and  its  surrounding,  the  strong- 
er the  growth ;  and  the  stronger  its  growth,  the  more  the 
presence  of  the  Vital  Force.  Some  branches  becoming  thus 
comparatively  strong,  draw  to  themselves  more  and  more  of 
this  Vital  Force ;  others  deprived,  sicken  and  die.  The 
strong  branches  cannot  remain  equally  strong ;  but  all  seek 
to  live  by  making  the  most  of  their  privileges,  and  attaining 
to  a  direct  and  indirect  equilibration.  This  rivalry  is  con- 
tinued till,  as  in  the  former  case,  some,  becoming  too  weak 
for  the  contest,  sicken  and  die.  Thus  is  it  with  religions. 
The  faith  of  the  individual  gives  place  to  that  of  the  fam- 
ily, that  of  the  family  to  that  of  the  clan,  that  of  the  clan  to 
that  of  the  tribe,  that  of  the  tribe  to  that  of  the  nation,  that 
of  the  nation  to  that  of  united  nations  ;  and  finally  the  strife 
among  the  universal  faiths,  causes  each  to  claim  the  right  to 
universal  dominion.  The  Vital  Force  runs  through  the 
whole,  the  divine  Idea  is  by  the  whole  reflected.  That  faith 
which  best  interprets  this  One  and  Common  Idea,  is  the 
faith  most  fit  to  survive,  the  faith   1-hat  will   survive;  and 


A  Philosophical  fn'/nirii  into  (ho^  Principles  of  Religion.    103 

that  faith  will  best  int(T|)it't  this  idea,  which  is  the  outcome 
of  an  intelligence  most  conversant  with  nature.  Goil's  Rev- 
elation is  thus  seen  to  be  eternal  and  continuous.  The 
primitive  mind,  even  living  in  modern  society,  sees  a  world 
confused  and  confusing;  a  chaos,  not  a  cosmos;  a  God 
thwarted  in  his  purposes,  and  correcting  his  own  works ;  a 
Governor  with  infinite  power,  wisdom,  and  goodness,  void 
of  ability  to  prevent  devils  and  demons  overthrowing  his 
throne.  JNIiracles,  disorder,  fill  his  universe  ;  his  God  is  on 
a  journey.  But  to  the  intelligent  there  is  one  God,  One 
Law,  One  Order,  One  Love,  One  Volition,  One  Upward 
Movement  forever. 

In  the  face  of  the  regularit}',  universality,  and  persistence 
of  the  forces  of  nature,  it  is  almost  inconceivable  why  men 
can  dare  preach  a  faith  for  which  they  claim  an  exclusive 
sanction.  The  time  is  fast  coming,  is  now  at  our  doors, 
when  the  sanction,  and  the  beauty  of  Christianity  will 
be  seen  not  in  the  supposition  of  its  supernatural  origin, 
which  would  be  enough  in  itself  to  condemn  it ;  not  in  the 
supposition  of  its  miracles,  acceptable  to  the  credulous  and 
superstitious  ;  but  in  the  fact  that  it  is  the  natural  and  high- 
est outcome  of  human  nature,  developed,  fed,  and  directed, 
according  to  universal  laws,  and  by  the  universal  impulse  of 
the  Universal  Reason.  Herein  lies  its  verity ;  herein  lies  its 
worth;  herein  lies  its  superiority';  herein  lies  the  highest 
proof  of  the  soul's  immortal  nature: 

"  Oh  ;  I  seem  to  stand  treml)ling,  where  foot  of  mortal  ne'er 
hath  trod  ;  wrapped  in  the  radiance  from  that  sinless  land 
which  eye  hath  never  seen. 
Visions  come  and  go ;  shapes  of  resplendent  beauty  round 


104  Essays  on  God  and  3Ian, 

me  throng;  from  angel's  lips  I  seem  to  hear  the  flow  of 
soft  and  holy  song. 

It  is  nothing  now,  when  heaven  is  opening  on  my  sightless 
eyes; 

When  airs  of  paradise  refresh  my  brow,  the  earth  in  dark- 
ness lies. 

In  a  purer  clime,  m}^  being  fills  with  rapture ;  waves  of 
thought  roll  in  upon  my  sightless  eyes ; 

Strains  sublime  break  over  me  unsought. 

Give  me  now  my  lyre.     I  feel  the  stirring  of  a  gift  divine. 

Within  my  bosom  glows  unearthly  fire  lit  by  no  skill  of 
mine." 

(b):     IN    DOCTRINAL    ESSENTIALS    IT   IS    ONE 
WITH    OTHER   RELIGIONS. 

I :         IMMORTALITY :  — 

One  of  the  fundamentals  of  the  religious  faith  of  every 
Christian  is  the  immortality  of  the  soul.  But  this  doctrine 
is  not  peculiar  to  the  Christian  ;  it  is  in  some  form  or  other 
universally  believed ;  its  expectation  is  natural  to  humanity. 
Aristotle  certainly  doubted,  as  a  great  many  scientists  to- 
da3%  the  immortality  of  the  soul ;  but  he  admits  that  it  was 
a  common  l)elief: 

'■'•AD-a  iiYi'^  ooiJt  i^ouXr/fftg  xat  TTpoaipstrt';  raurov  ...  re 
—fi'^zioj  f/yBpujnujv  y.ai  aOa'^fj-zoi  ti'^ai  .  .  .  ftovXrjfrc?  (T  zfTzc  ror^ 
ao'jyaro)-^,  o'.oy  aOa-Mi.Gui.'i  —  But  wish  and  expectation  are  not 
the  same.  It  is  a  wish  of  all  men  to  be  immortal ;  man  may 
wish  for  the  impossible  such  as  immortality."  (Nik.  Eth. 
Ill,  4,  7;  Eud  Eth.  II,  10,   1).     The  following  from  Plato 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   105 

is,  perhaps,  equal  to  anything  that  can  be  found  on  this  sub- 
ject :  — 

TTyv-  ^"jyji'i.  Oij  yajt  or/  yt  Ihj^zfi  yz  <fOf>'.^  niTir^  oonu-i'  «>  t^ixi-it 
jj.£.yiO<iui>yia^^  wfrre  xaTaif/ioyr^iTac  /lev  u~zp,ja/./.(r/zr^.'  Or^o'.vj^  ,j'/;i', 
dia7:;//atuj(Ta(7dai  dz  r.tkayrf^  i)Si;j.a^Oai  ds  aflTTj,  y.ay.iifi-Tr^aaaOa'.  ih 
~o?uzztais,  a-^aji'/.nl'at  de  £C<i  ziiv  aufiavov  xtu  loivj  -ZfHifopa^  affTftwv 
xai  dfiaiiDU'i  7^/.tuu  rz  xat  rrz/.r^.'r^'}  (V^arn/.a^  zz  /.at  ourrz'.^  zx/.z'.i/'scs 
zz  xat  zUy^z'.a^  ar:ii/.aza<TZ<i(TZ'.'i  i()riiLZ[)'.a<;  zz  y.(i.t  Zfni~u^  orrrac,  xac 
H/.ztadtuv  yziiiur^a^  xat  Ozpou^;  a-^z/jLOw;  zz  xazuifo/jU'i  (i;j.,jfjw,>  xat 
TZpfj'^zr^pui'j  z^(U(Si.i)0<i  <TupiJ.o'j^,  xai  za  zoo  xoaiwo  -adrjiiaza  -ana- 
T.r^^aatUu  z/xn^  z<r^  ajwva,  zt  /zij  zi  Bziav  ovrw^  £>rjv  ~>zu;ia  zr. 
<r''oyrj,  dC  6-j  ZTj'/  ziDv  zrj/.'./.aj'^(iz  Tzzptxna-^  xac  yxo/T'.y  ztryzy.  wnzt 
iiox  z'.<i  (Irv^azirj^  a/A'  cC?  ada\>a<nav  jizzajBa^J^zCi,  lo  A^cuyz^  oude 
(upaipzavj  c^iJ?  i"'"!^  ayaQi'yj^  ak)^  ttX'.xpt'^zrrzzpav  zryj  a-okauffiv^ 
()u8z  !iz;iiy/jizva>i  d^'r^zw  tTujfj.azc  za^  r^i/o^aXj  ia'/.a  axpazou'f  a~a<jujv 
(U.yr^i)ii\/u},i.  xz'.nz  yap  atft^r^  pji/codz'.'^  zx  rry^'Oc  Tijvr  itpxzr^'i,  zvOa 
anuva  ~ayza  xa'.  anzz'jaxza  xa',  ayr^paza^  ya/.ry/O'^  dz  z'.^;  xai  xa/.w^ 
ayaxii  /5j"9,  affa/.zrjzip  ri<Tjy'.<i  zuoaLaXo/J-zxK^^  xai  7:zp:ad/ia»/  zr,> 
(puG'.M  <fih)ffi)<puj,'  oo  ~p<)i  oy)M\)  xai  Ozazpoy^  a)j.a  ~po^  a;i<f'.OaXrj 
rjjy  ahftz'jiy  —  Many  and  beautiful  are  the  reasons  one  may 
give  for  the  immortality  of  the  soul ;  no  mortal  n:\ture  could 
undertake  such  great  works  as  the  despising  the  far  greater 
strength  of  wild  beasts  ;  the  traversing  the  seas  ;  the  estab- 
lishing cities  and  the  founding  of  politics ;  the  beholding 
the  heavens,  seeing  the  circuits  of  the  stars,  and  the  courses 
of  the  sun  and  moon,  their  risings  and  settings  ;  their  depart- 
ures and  rapid  returns  ;  the  equinoxes  and  the  two  solstices  ; 
the  wintry  blasts  of  Pleiades  and  the  breezes  of  summer ; 
the  down-pouring  of  rains  ;    the  tracts  of  the  violent  light- 


100  Essays  on  God  and  3Ian, 

ning  ;  and  the  making  out  the  ehanges  of  the  world  for  ages, — 
unless  some  divine  spirit  was  naturally  in  him  through 
which  he  obtains  this  wisdom  and  knowledge.  Not  to 
death,  O  Axiochus,  dost  thou  change,  but  to  immortality ; 
nor  wilt  thou  be  deprived  of  the  good,  but  rather  wilt  thou 
have  far  more  desirable  pleasures,  not  indeed  such  as  are 
associated  with  a  mortal  body,  but  pure,  freed  from  every 
affliction.  For  there  shalt  thou  arrive  delivered  from  this 
prison,  where  all  things  are  void  of  toil,  where  sighing  and 
old  age  can  never  come ;  but  where  life  peaceful  and  freed 
from  every  evil,  is  forever  happy  in  unbroken  tranquillity, 
contemplating  things  not  with  a  view  to  the  favors  of  the 
mob  or  of  the  theatre,  but  with  a  view  to  abounding  and 
flourishing  truth."  (Axiochus,  370,  10-35). 

We  are  here  told  that  the  noble  nature  of  man  can  have 
no  earthly  origin.  The  immortal  spark  within  him  is  divine 
and  eternal.  To  this  immortal  life  must  be  ascribed  his 
power  to  overcome  ferocious  beasts,  to  found,  build,  and 
govern  mighty  empires  ;  to  open  the  secrets  of  nature  ;  and  to 
examine  the  great  works  of  God.  This  divine  nature  within 
man,  having  from  heaven  descended,  must  to  heaven  again 
ascend.  Man  departs  not  to  death,  oblivion,  but  to  life 
eternal.  Separated  from  bodily  evils,  there  he  enjoys  true 
felicity,  unmixed  pleasure.  No  vain  labor  is  there  ;  no  more 
sighing  ;  no  old  age  ;  but  life  peaceful,  tranquillity  unbroken. 
Say  the  Vedas : 

"  Those  who  know  the  High  Brahman,  the  vast,  hidden  in 
the  bodies  of  all  creatures,  and  alone  enveloping  every- 
thing, as  the  Lord,  they  become  immortal.  ...  He 
is  the  one  ruler  of    many.     The    wise    who   perceive  him 


A  Philosophical  Inqninj  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.    107 

within  their  self,  to  them  belongs  eternal  happiness,  not  to 
others."  (Svetasvatara-Upanishad,  III  and  VI  Adhyayas). 
"^7{  ({'O'^fj  nop  duva/iiC  Tzurpo^  ouira  (pazv^i)v^ 

AQw^amq  rt  /x^'/et,  /.a'.  Cw'J^  d^T-ort(;  eari 

^i|lr|  (Ts  iT~£udii'>  ~fi')'i  TO  (fai)i{  v.ai  ~azjt(K;  ay^a^, 

p-^dsj  z-zjicfOri  /TO'.  <r'"JX^/i  ~(>^-uv  lfS(Taiizvrj  voov. 

Taora  izazr^p  v^-^i>r^nz^  (iporo^i  (J'  6i  zil'uyujzo 

Ou'h'^  O'^r^Tov  tyo'jaa   o'/.rj  0ziiOvj  ixt'itOtuffrat. 

^Anii(t\/'.a>  anyti  yap.,  (up    rj  ~z).t  csmiia  [ipoTzlov.      ,      , 

Zr^rrjffov  izapadiiffirj. 

Ai%eo  ao  (^'oyji^  nyzZOy',  oO^y,  ij  rcve  ra^et 

Zio'iari  T'.dvfia^,  s~i  ra~'.v  cup^  r^g  sppuv/g^ 

A'jO'.<s  ooaTr^jTi.'c,  lzp(p  ).oyu)  tpyov  zwu)aa<;  — 

The    soul  being  a  bright  fire  by  the  Power  of  the  Father, 
Remains  immortal  and  is  mistress  of  life. 
Haste  tliou  to  the  light,  to  the  bright  beams  of  the  father, 
B\'   whom   was   sent   to   thee  a  soul,  clothed   with   reason 

strong. 
These  things  the  Father  conceived,  thy  mortal  was  animated. 
Man's  soul  will  in  some  way  or  other  clasp  God  to  itself. 
Having  nothing  mortal,  she  drinks  deeply  of  divinit3^ 
She  boasts  a  harmony  by  which  the  mortal  body  exists. 
Seek  paradise. 

Seek  thou  the  way  of  the  soul,  whence  and  how, 
Having  served  tlie  body,  to  the  same  happy  place  from  which 

thou  didst  flow. 
Thou  mayest  again  return,  uniting  sacred  work  to  sacred 

thought."     (Oracles  of  Zoroaster). 


108  Essays  on  God  and  31  an, 

"He  whose  soul  is  fixed  upon  the  study  of  Brahm,  enjoy- 
eth  pleasure  without  decline.  The  man  who  is  of  subdued 
passious,  find  understanding,  and  has  set  his  heart  upon  sal- 
vation and  is  free  from  lust,  fear,  and  anger,  is  forever  blest 
in  this  life  ;  he  shall  obtain  Brahm  and  be  forever  blest." 

(Dialogues  of  Kreeshna  and  Arjoon.) 

We  have  given  sufficient  proof  of  the  fact  that  to  no  faith 
nor  nation  belongs  exclusively  the  belief  in  immortality. 
The  spark  of  immortal  life  shines  brightly  in  every  human 
breast.  This  spark  divine,  for  a  moment  may  be  dulled; 
but  the  soul,  revolting  at  the  thought  of  annihilation,  again 
is  flooded  with  divine  light  reaching  to  the  very  gates  of 
heaven.  It  seems  deeply  written  in  human  nature  that  man 
shall  not  die. 

II:     GOD  IS    THE    FIRST    PRINCIPLE   AND   IS  IN- 
TELLIGENT : 

''Ore  7:pz<7^UTSpo'>  e'.rj  <l'uy-q  (Tuitiaro^  a-ana  -avr«9.  cJ  yap 
ajittvov  y.ai  ~a).atoT-pov  xa:  Ozoideurspo'^,  -<.Ouyirj  6~i  rou  ytipi)vo<; 
■/.at  vzCDTspou  /.at  aTtjiorepou  Tzavrayrri  re  apyir/  anyoptwou  izpta^o- 
rtptr/  7.0.1  ayov  ayoixv/oo  iza'/rr^.  et  S'  zyzt  thoth  ouztu^;,  zo  ys 
~p(i)T<)'/  ijp.'.'/  rou  TZpiOTiiu  rrjq  yv/tfTtio^  ~'.Ow^(jiztptf/  av  zvr^  frytdav 
t)~r^pyiitvov,  ...  TO  dscurarov  fr/zojg  (^'uyr^'?  yf^o\\  ro'jzo 
If  tfTTt  (Tysdow  w  jxovu)  rJ^azzf.'/  /.at  ori'iioupytv/  -poarj/.at  — Mind 
is  superior  to  body.  For  whatever  is  better,  older,  and 
diviner  than  another,  it  is  reasonable  to  believe,  being 
superior  to  it,  rules  that  other  at  all  times  as  a  thing  ruled, 
and  directs  it  as  a  thing  directed,  the  latter  being  meaner, 
newer,  and  less  honorable.  ...  If  this  is  so,  then  the 
first  of  our  kind,  (intellectuality),  must  have  been  in  the 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  lielifjiou.    109 

beginning  more  influential  than  the  first  of  creation. 
The    (livinest    kind    of    mind  —  this    is     that     to    wliich 
alone  belong  the  framing  and  fashioning  of  the  universe." 

(Plato:  Epinorais,  980,981). 

exdcups  TTpujTo?  —  And  the  maker,  who  self-operating  framed 
the  world,  which  first  sprung  out  from  mind.  " 

(Oracles  of  Zoroaster). 

"  uoTiO'i  no'^  Of]  xaza  Xayo-^  rov  scxara  d=:i  Xeytiv  roxjt  rov  y.oniKf) 
Zuiov  £!i(}>u^uv  evvouv  T£  T7j  aXrids'.a  dta  rry^  zoo  Bzou  yv^sftdai  ~pti- 
votav — Thus  for  a  very  similar  reason  are  we  obliged  to 
say  that  this  whole  universe  must  be  a  living  thing  endowed 
with  reason  through  tlie  providence  of  God." 

(Plato :  Timaeus,  30). 

Ill:  GOD  THE  ORIGIN  AND  RULER  OF  ALL: 

(I).     NECESSARY  FOR  CREATION: 

"  Tc  TO  ov  as;,  yv^zaw  d;  aux  ^/<>'-',  .  .  .  •^orjtTz'.  ij.sza  '/.nyuu 
7:opi?.rj-::T£uv,  asi  xaza  zduza  o^.  ,  .  .  nav  ds  ao  to  yiyvojitvov 
on  aiTCOo  rcvug  ef  avayxTj^;  yty^tnOai  :  -a'^rt  yap  adovazov  yu)pi<s 
acztuu  y;>e(j'.v  aytvj  —  .  .  zd'jzr^'j  5tj  ysvsffsioi^  xac  xiirrujio  fia- 
h.(7z   av  ris""  '^/'/'J'-'  xoptiozazr^'j  ~ai)    (V/i^poy^   (f(i(r/'.;wy^   (j.~<i(')zyop.v^o<i^ 

opdozara  a-odzyotz''  a>  —  What  Is  Eternal  Being,  having  no 
origin,  comprehended  by  the  intelligence  with  reason,  in 
this  way  forever  existing.  It  is  certain  that  every  created 
thing  must  have  had  a  cause  ;  for  it  is  impossible  that  any 
thing  should  be  created  without  a  cause.  Should  any  rea. 
sonable  man  assert  that  in  this  Eternal  Being  he  finds  the 
most  reasonable  cause  of  creation  and  the  cosmos,  he  would 
make  a  most  reasanable  assertion." 

(II. i:  Tiuiiuus,  27.  28,  30-) 


110  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

(II).     NECESSARY  FOR  GOVERNMENT: 

"  Ja,3w,ai>  ^t;,  ris"  rpo-O'i  (v>  s'.rj  zofTourov   ~;p'.<pepiiv  oy/.ov  Ttva 
(po(J'.'->  ~(rj  aoTov  ^f}ov()'^,  orro'j  -£/)t<pBperai.      0£ov  dr^  <prj/j.i  tov  airiov 

sffsuda'.,  xa'.  ouTZiiO'  kzzpio(}  t'.-jat  du'^aruv Sio  Stj  xat 

TOT  r^drj  dzOi;  6  xiKjixr/traq  ayrov,  xadapiDv  ev  anoptaig  ovra,  xTjdo- 
fXzvog  ha  p.yj  ysinaaOzi^  b~o  Tapayr^<}  d'.aXuOsci^  ei?  Tov  t)J9  avo- 
fiotorazog  a-£'.pnv  ovTa  To~(yj  Sorj^  raAtv  cctdpu^  auzno  tujv  ~rj(Ja}.- 
[wv  ^;/'>(»/i;>r>9,  za  '/(KTr^frayza  xat  ?jjde/za  £^  zrj  xaff"  iauzau  T:p(izzpa 
~-p'.odo}   (Tzp£(^'a?  X()r7fj.£'.   zs  xw.  e-a.'opBorj    o.da:>(i.zo'^  a.uz(i'^  xai  ayr^- 

pu)v  a-tpyaXtza'.  — The  question  is  how  is  it  possible  that  any 
nature  could  move  around  tliis  awful  fabric  of  a  universe  with 
such  regularity.  \ye  reply  that  God  is  the  cause  of  this,  and 
that  witliout  Him,  it  is  impossible.  .  .  .  Therefore  the 
author  of  this  order  is  God  who  seeing  creation  in  distress, 
guards  it  against  disturbance,  lest  it  be  dissolved  and  fall 
into  the  place  of  infinite  irregularity ;  for  watching  all  its 
movements,  again  He  puts  every  injurious  and  dissolved  part 
back  into  its  former  course  of  activity,  gives  it  order,  and 
establishes  it  immortal,  so  that  in  renewed  youth  it  again  ac- 
complishes its  work." 

(Ibi:  Epinomis,  983;  Politicus,  XVI). 

IV:     GOD  IS  THE  FATHER  OF  ALL: 

"Zcf  TTazsp,  fj  pa  £T  SfTZB  Ozo'.  xaza  naxpov  6).oii7zoVy 

El  ezzov  pyr^iTzrjpZ'i  azatrdaXo'^  u{ipcj  zz'.ao'j  — 
O  Father  Zeus!     It  could  not  be  that  thy  rule  extended 
over  the  wide  heavens,  if  those  suitors  made  not  atonement 
for  their  arrogant  insolence!  " 

(Homer:   Odyssey,  XXIV,  350—). 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principlas  of  Religion.    Ill 

"  //  (5s    Tw>   rt/./w/   "-'''/Ji    (J'-ct:/://^  :     ~ii   yt/.ti   yv/zr^'ja,/    /.at    xc/rw 
tpiXia/  aityi)\i  xai   ~i)zrj{iz.:a\i  efT7'.>,  ozs/t   efrn   ,3aiT'.?.ixrj<;  sj^o?  apyrj<;. 
Aio  xa).(o^  '(tiiTjpti'i  Til,!  A'.d.  -jiiXtryi'iiiitoTV/  e'.zojv 
-arr^p  a'^iipw,/  r;  Sso)'^  tc  — 
T«v  i3a(T:).za   zoorioy   «~<z>rwv.      .      ,       .      '//  /x£v  yap   ~-j.rpog  ~po^ 
ucE'.'i  xdfyiu^ta  ,3a(T.).z'.a^  tys^i  <ryr^'La\   -:u)\>  Ttx:^u)'/  yap  To—a~p'.  p.e?.-i. 
E^zeuOzv    ds    xai    'Oprjpo'^    nrj    Jta    -aztpa   -pnaayupiui'., 
EfSTi  (it  {)  /y.iV  ~pog  yo'y-c:;  ip'.Xta  r-xvoc?^  xw.  a/dpuj-otg  ~i>ii^  H-dug — 
The   government  of    children  is  kingly  in  its  nature :    for 
that  which  begets  rules  as  well  because  of  excellence  as  of 
love,    which  is  a  kind  of  kingly  rule.     Wherefore    Homer 
properly  addresses  God  calling  him 

Father  of  both  gods  and  men, 
making  him  thus  King  of  all.  .  For  the  relation  of  the 
father  to  his  cliildren  is  kingly  in  its  nature:  for  this  is  be- 
coming to  the  father  of  children.  Therefore  Homer  calls 
God,  Father.  The  love  of  children  towards  the  father  is  as 
that  of  men  toward  God."  (Aristotle:  Republic  I,  12,3; 
Nico.  Eth.  VIII,  10,4;  12,  4). 

"  Dadeinde  auxilium,  pater,  atque  haec  omina  firma.  — 
Grant  us  thy  aid,  O  Father  I  and  confirm  the  omens." 

(Virgil). 

"  Thou  art  the  Father  of  all  things,  animate  and  inani- 
mate." (Dialogues  of  Kreeshna  &  Arjoon). 

'EauTov  6  izaTTip  ijp-atrt.'  »u<f  t-j  ir^  dova/Mtt  '^a-pa  x^.t'.Ta-;  co:<» 
Kup.  Ou  yap  a-(>  Trarpixr^'^  (^/'/^i'^  ars/e?  n  zpnyaXf. — The 
Father  bath  snatched  himself  away ;  neither  hath  he  shut 
up  his  own  fire  in  his  intellectual  power.  For  nothing 
unfinished  proccedcth  from  llie  Father's  rule." 

(Oracles  of  Zoroaster). 


112  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

"  .  ,  Xeysi  "^('9  auTou?  u  rode  to  ~ay  j'e'/r^rra'i  ra'Js :  Beat 
9zU)y,    ujy    syu}    8x^/1:00^)^0^   Tzarr^p    rs    efiyw^  —  The    Creator    of 

this  whole  universe  thus  spoke  to  them :  ye  gods  of  gods, 
of  whose  works  I  the  Father  am  the  contriver." 

(Plato:  Timaeus,  40). 

V:  REWARDS    AND    PUNISHMENTS  FROM  GOD:— 

" 'Or£  0tooq  yt  00  Xa'Ma\i£t  ixarspog  aurcuv  ocoi^  sff~i'>.  '0  /itv 
OsofO-r^q  uy  e'.r^,  6  d£  dzoptcrr^?  —  For  each  of  them  (the  good 
and  the  bad)  is  perfectly  known  to  God  whatever  their  char- 
acters may  be.  The  one  must  be  hated  by  God,  the  other 
loved  by  him."  (Plato:  Civitas,  612). 

"Ouy  ouTUJ  (T/iLxpoc;  u>v  8o<Tsc  xaza  to  Tr^<;  yr^q  (iadoq^ooS"  lxI'Tj/.o^ 
ysvo/xtvoq  £'.'  Tov  oopa'/o'^  wjaiZTr^aei,  Tiaziq  8t  aoTUJ.'  tti'j  npoffYj- 
xouffav  T'./j.ioptav  etr  e>da8;  /j.£>(U'^  ccrs  xat  'A3ou  dtaTtopsuOscq  etrr 
xai  TOUTiuy  ££t  ayptujTepov  stc  dia/.op.i(TOeiq  totzo^  —  For  WCrt 
thou  so  little  as  to  hide  thyself  in  the  bottom  of  the 
earth,  or  so  great  as  to  betake  thyself  into  the  heavens 
above  ;  it  would  avail  thee  nothing.  Thou  shalt  pay  the  full 
resulting  penalty  for  thy  crimes,  either  while  here  remaining, 
or  after  thou  art  departed  to  Hades,  or  perchance  to  some 
far  worse  place."  (Ibi:  Leges,  905). 

"Aaj  y.ara  toutov  Stj  tov  koyov  6  ptv  aujcppcii-j  -qiiuy^  Qzui  (fcXo:^ 
6polo^^  6  (j£   /r/j    ffvjcppiov  avojKHoq    Te    xac    dcayopo^    /.at    adi/.o:;  — 

According  to  this  reasoning,  therefore,  he  that  is  prudent- 
among  us,  is  dear  to  God  ;  because  he  is  like  Him.  But  he 
that  is  imprudent  among  us,  is  unlike  God;  and,  therefore, 
unjust."  (Ibi,  Leges,  716). 

'Tov  8s:  Gsov  TUiv  (pa'Awv  oox  ewo?  entpsXetffdai.  .  ,  £:  yap 
rtq  STiifxelzia  tojv  a>0p(U7:tvu}v  biro  dsw^  yivtrat,  u)(r-sp   8o/.-c,  xat 


^1  Philosophicul  J II qui ry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.    115 

ejTj  uv  zohtyu-j  yrv.pzvj  re  aurtiu^  ru)  Ufittrrw,  xai  muq  a^arrtuvra? 
IxaXiaza  ruuzo  xac  zc/ku'^tu^  ay7tu~o'.ziv  w^  riuv  <fi).w'^  aozv.^  £~i- 
litkouij.Z'^duq  /.at  o/'Oio:;  rz  /.n.'.  /.alvj:;  -(larzir/za^i  —  It  is  not  at 
all  likely  that  God  cares  for  a  base  man.  .  .  But 
if  God  has  any  regard  at  all  for  the  wants  of  humanity, 
which  seems  very  probable,  then  would  it  be  most  reasona- 
ble to  believe  that  he  is  highly  delighted  with  that  which  is 
purest,  and  rewards  them  who  give  it  the  first  place  in  their 
affections,  and  honor  it ;  because  thus  doing  rightly  and  no- 
bly they  have  a  regard  for  God's  wishes  as  being  a  friend  to 
them."  (Aristotle:  Eth.  Meg.  II,  8,  6 ;  Nic.  Eth.X,9,  13). 

"Z,'y  "Uv  /.zy-zw.  ozi  zx  zou  (iv/.aui  -fiuzzzv^  6  d'.xw.o?  yi/zzuij 
xa>  zx  ziiu  za  Ciocrtir/a  6  (nocfpw^ :  zx  oz  zou  za  [j.Tj  ~jiazzzi)/ 
laoza  (lodztg  av  iiooz  /j.t?J.7jfTStz  yz-^zrrOai  ayaOo^  —  It  is  well 
to  say  that  as  the  result  of  doing  justly,  a  man  becomes 
just;  as  the  result  of  acting  prudentlv,  a  man  becomes 
pi'udent :  but  as  a  result  of  not  doing  these  things,  no  man 
can  ever  become  good."  (Ibi:  Nic.  Eth.  II,  4,  5). 

"  A  man  of  good  works  will  become  good,  a  man  of  bad 
works  will  become  bad.  As  a  man's  desire  is,  so  is  his  will. 
As  his  will  is,  so  is  his  deed ;  and  whatever  deed  he  does, 
that  shall  he  reap." 

(Vcdas:  Brihadaranyaka-Upanishad,  IV  Adhya3-a). 

"  I  am  made  evident  by  my  own  power;  and  as  often  as 
there  is  a  decline  of  viitue  and  an  insurrection  of  vice  and 
injustice  in  the  world,  I  appear  from  age  to  age  for  the  pre- 
servation of  the  just,  the  destruction  of  the  wicked,  and  the 

establishment  of  virtue I  assist  those  men  who 

in  all  things  walk  in  m}'  path God  is  to  be 

obtained   by   liira  who   makoth  God  alone  the  object  of  his 


114  Essays  on   uo<I  and  Man, 

works Those  whose  understanding  is  in  him, 

are  purified  from  all  their  offences,  and  go  from  whence  they 
shall  never  return.  .  .  But  the  habitation  of  those  mortals 
whose  generation  hath  lost  its  virtue,  shall  be  in  hell." 

(Ibi:   Dialogues  of  Kreeslina  and  Arjoon). 

yi:  GOD  LOOKS  TO  THE  HEART: 

a<^v/.ia'j  oozz  zaq  znuioza^  ~pa^ti^  TZpomtvzat  Tzpazzetv  zou^  z=:  p/q 
dcxacou'i  Tcuv  w^Opco-uiv  (fsuyouni  xat  zoug  dcxacow;  (Tzspyouffi.^  — 
God  hates  the  wicked  ;  and  because  he  seeks  not  injustice 
nor  any  such  deeds,  he  flees  away  from  unjust  men,  but  he 
loves  the  just."  (Plato:  Leges,  908). 

"/u/;  yap  av  ds'.vov  ecTj^  ec  7r/>09  zu  Scopa  xat  zu<}  Ou(na<;  a~nj3?.e- 
-oufTcv  Tjpiov  01  0t<n,  alio,  //tj  zpo':  zr^v  (I'uyjy^,  wj  rtf  Cawg  xat 
dtxa:og  wv  zuyyavrj.  TlokXio  ys  p.aX).<r^^  otp.ai^  Tj  rrpog  ra^  ttoX.ozs- 
?.tcg  zauza?  -opza?  z£  xai  Oucria^i  —  It  would  indeed  be  a  terrible 
thing,  if  God  judged  our  righteousness  according  to  our  gifts 
and  offerings,  but  not  according  to  the  heart.  Much  more,  in 
my  opinion,  does  God  regard  the  heart." 

(Ibi:  Alcibiades  II,  149,  150). 

"  Fcy^iotrxstv  pzv  ^op-aaay  zryj  rjpzzzpa\i  auza  VKv^oiav  Xvyiup.vj 
xat  zov  zt  y.ahvj  rjptwj  xat  o.yaOov  a.p.a  Oaup.aazoj'^  aa-a^zcjOa.t  xat 
zov  a<foi)pa  xaxwj  ptazv^  —  We  hold  that  God  is  acquainted 
with  all  our  thoughts,  that  he  loves  the  noble  and  good,  but 
hates  the  base."  (Ibi:  Epinomis,  985). 

"/la£  o  SzDi;  ajzyzzat  xara  dw^ap.tv  /a/y.^Javwy  zag  Ouato.g  — 
That  sacrifice  is  acceptable  to  God  which  is  offered  accord- 
ing to  our  ability."         (Aristotle:  Eud.  Eth.  VII,  10,  23). 

'"'"Errzt  ()z  ~pwzTi  zidv  thxatofTuyco'^  TTpog  ro^i^"  Ozou'C,  ztzo.  T:p<i<;  oat- 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Pri)tci])les  of  Relifjion.    115 

jjLOvai}^  £iTa  ~f)<»;  -azfuoa.  z'/;  ^"'/rio,  ecru  -o"v  zinj<;  y.aTii'.yiiiit.mU'i  — 
Our  first  obligation  js  toward  God,  next  to  the  divine  powers, 
next  to  our  country  and  jjarents,  and  next  to  the  dead." 

(Ihi:  De.  Virt.  et  Vit.  V). 

"  'A',  ynit  aoyatai  Ou<na'.  xai  i>u/(i(i<i'.  (faiyir^rat  y.^izaOa'.  [uza  ra^ 
Tujv  y.anizarj  iruy/.o/iKJa^  litov  a-a/jxat:  [ui/.ttrra  yap  ev  rnuTo'.'i 
£ff^o}.a!^ov  to:?  xw.pof;  —  It  appears  that  the  early  sacrifices 
and  religious  gatherings  of  the  people  occurred  especially  at 
the  time  of  harvest,  such  as  at  the  ingathering:  at  such  limes 
the  people  had  abundant  leisure." 

(Ibi:    Nico.  P:th.  VIII,  9,  5). 

^''E~std'  a<9  oux  eixog  Toog  f^zowi  ya'.psr^  za'.<i  na-a-^w.-;  rwv  Oun- 
fievcDv  aXXa  Tai<s  £U(re,3siai<;  tw>  Ooif^ruiv  —  Since  it  is  not  at  all 
reasonable  that  God  should  be  pleased  with  the  mere  offer- 
ings of  the  sacrificers,  rather  is  he  pleased  with  their  true 
prayers."  (Ibi:    Ad  Alexandrura,  III,  9). 

VII:  libp:rality  and    forgiveness  must  be 

PRACTICED : 

It  is  frequently  taught  and  generally  l)elieved  that  liberality 
and  phiian'Jn-opy  have  had  their  birth  since  the  Christian 
era;  but  this  is  certainly  not  the  truth.  It  would  be  but 
reasonable  to  suppose  that  in  the  progress  of  civilisation  the 
finer  elements  or  traits  of  human  nature,  would  more  readilj'' 
and  generally  manifest  themselves  ;  but  to  supi)Ose  that  these 
traits  are  rooted  in  Christianity  is  a  very  great  error,  and  no 
less  a  grave  injustice.     Let  us  examine : 

Christ  is  said  to  be  the  author  of  the  words,  "It  is  more 
blessed  to  give  than  to  receive;  "  but  if  Christ  used  these 


116  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

words,  he  is  certainly  not  the  author  of  the  idea;  for  this 
sentiment  was  taught  hundreds  of  j'ears  before : 

"  Jio  tiaXXov  sffTi  Tou  eXtuOtpiou  to  di(Jovat  oi?  dst   rj   Xaii^ay^iv 
6dv>  (5i£  xa£  /jtTj   kaii^a'^z.i'j  oObv  ou  Szt.      T'lj?  yap  apsrrj^  [xaXXir^   to 

£U  TTOiciV  Tj   TO  £U  TZaiT^-f^,   XUC   TfJL  y.a'/jj.   -paTTElV  fUlXXo'J  5J    TIL  w.nyiiu. 

(If)  TzpaTTSCv :  (lux  a<JrjXo>  (T  otc  tyj  pv^  dorrs'.  irzsTat  to  so  Tzoiev^  y.a'. 
TO  y.aXa  -paTTtv^,  ttj  ds  X.rji^'si  to  so  ~a(T-ysiv  ij  tttj  aiay^poTzpaysij. 
hai  vj  y_o.piii  Tip  diSo'^TC,  ao  toj  prj  Xap^a'jovTt.,  xat  6  s-ai'^o<;  8s 
paXX.iiv.  .  .  .  — It  is  rather  the  mark  of  the  noble  na- 
ture to  give  to  whomever  it  is  necessary  than  to  receive 
what  is  necessary  or  not  to  receive  wiiat  is  not  neces- 
sary. For  it  is  more  the  mark  of  virtue  to  confer  bene- 
fits than  it  is  to  receive  them,  and  to  do  noble  acts  than 
to  refrain  from  base  ones.  It  is  evident  that  to  confer 
favors  and  to  do  noble  deeds,  belong  to  giving  in  gen- 
eral ;  but  the  spirit  of  taking  is  characterised  by  the  fact 
that  it  receives  favors  rather  than  l)y  the  fact  that  it  refrains 
from  active  baseness.  Besides,  thanks  and  praise  follow 
upon  the  heels  of  him  who  gives,  but  not  upon  the  heels  of 
him  who  simply  refrains  from  receiving. 

(Aristotle:  Nic.  Eth.  IV,  1). 
'"''UXouTSiv  (T  ou  padcov  to'^  sXsudspw^,  prjTS  X.r^TZTixuv  o'^tu  pr^Ts 
<fuXaxTixo'^^  TtposTixov  8s  xai  prj  TcpuivTa  8c^  doTa  Ta  yprppaTa  aXX 
hsxa  T-q's  8o(TS(ug  —  It  is  not  easy  for  the  noble  man  to  be 
rich  ;  since  he  will  not  take  from  others,  nor  is  niggardly 
with  what  he  has ;  but  on  the  contrary  is  most  liberal  and 
esteems  wealth  not  for  the  sake  of  itself  but  for  the  sake  of 
the  benefits  which,  through  it,  he  may  confer  on  others." 

(Ibi). 

"£^7!  'j;   [SsXtcov  to    (f'.Xscv  Tj    TO    <ft.Xsi(TO(j.i ;    TO   psv   yap   ^cXeti/ 


A  Philosophical  Inquir;/  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   117 

f^£OY£ta  T.'s"  ^'5(»7j9  xai  a/aOiry^  <i-i)  ot  too  <ft?.e'.TOa'.  (luih/j.ca  tuj 
(pdnoiiv^u)  e'jzfiY^'.'i-  y.-'^rat  —  It  is  far  better  to  lie  a  friend 
than  to  be  befriended,  for  the  former  activity  is  accom- 
panied with  the  energ}'-  of  real  pleasure:  but  the  latter, 
never."  (Ibi:    Eth.  Meg.  II,  2,  31). 

xai  ~pi>'i  rn  YVjjr^(7ivj  7(0  y'£>>7;0£>7.',  h'j  /ur/a-^  £/  a'^0/ioj-n'.<f  aX/.a 
■/.(Li  z'j  (»o>!(7!  z'Z!  re's-  "Ai.'flTo:?  Ttuy  !^u)uj.',  xac  Toi'^  o/ioeOvefft  T:pii<i 
a)J.r,hi^  y.at  iialinra  zd'.i}  a/Opiortng,  ofltv  rou'f  (fi/.a/Onio-owi  STtat- 
•./t)U,'i£>.  I(>in  (5'  av  T's  xat  ey  rwis"  ~?.aya'.i?  wy-  ii'./.e'.o./  d-a^f  a-^Opio-n'i 
a>0i)uj7:ip  xat  (f'./.ov  —  It  is  natural  for  the  thing  begotten  to 
love  that  which  begets,  and  for  that  which  begets  to  love  that 
which  is  begotten,  not  only  among  men  but  also  among  birds 
and  animals  in  general.  This  is  especially  seen  among 
those  animals  of  the  same  variety',  most  of  all  among  men ; 
therefore  we  praise  philanthropists.  It  is  a  fact  of  which 
we  have  everywhere  abundant  proofs,  that  man  to  man  is 
something  familiar  and  dear."         (Ibi:   Nic.  Eth,  VIII,    1). 

'■^ E(iZ'.  Oz  (f'J.auri)'g  o  durau  kjtxty  -a>ra  -nazzu),/  v^  70:9  xara  ztt 
hjcsizzXz<;.  '0  fizv  ouv  (pavkii<;  <p:/.auri>^  t(T:'.\> :  aoTo<s  dorou  yap 
kvzxzv  -a'jza  npazTti :  akX"  ou-f  6  G~ouSaio<; :  oia  zouzo  yap  strzc 
<77rourVi:«?,  dzi  allou  htxf^  zouzo  rpazzsi — He  who  does 
everything  for  himself  with  the  view  of  enriching  himself,  is 
a  base  man.  The  base  man  is  a  selfish  man,  for  he  does 
ever3'thing  for  the  sake  of  himself ;  but  not  so  is  it  with 
the  noble  man :  for  the  very  thing  b}'  whicli  he  is  noble,  is 
that  he  works  for  the  sake  of  another." 

(Il)i:   Eth.  Meg.  II,   i:>,  1). 

"  Axolnudsi  Ss  zrj  eXsudzptozT/Zt  zou  r^OoU'^  oYpozr,>i  /.at  zvaywyia 
xat  ip'J.avOpojTZca,  xat  zo  etvat  eXzrjztxov  xat  <ftXo<ptXov^  xai  <pi).o^zvov^ 


118  Essays  on  God  and  Man., 

xai  (ftXoxaXnv  —  The  noble  man  is  known  by  mildness  of  dis- 
position, gentleness  of  manners,  love  of  humanity,  eharit}', 
love  of  friends,  hospitality,  and  the  love  of  that  which  is 
beautiful  and  good."  (Ibi:   De  Vir.  et  Yit.  V.  5). 

And  the  rule  for  giving  could  not  be  better  expressed 
than  in  these  words  of  Aristotle:  "  ^0  s/.iudcfnc^  mr^  doiait 
zoo  y.aXoo  b>z/.a  y.ai  dfiduj^'.  otg  yap  ozi  -/.at  oaa  y.<it  orz  v.u.'.  zaXla 
oaa  t~frai  rrj  i'/'Otj  Siorre: '^  xac  zaura  r^Seaii;  'q  u./.u~(ti^ :  zo  yap 
y.az^  aptzr^'j  i^8u   Tj    a.hj-ivj    y^/.'.aza   (J;  Xvttjio'j  ■ —  The   noble'  man 

gives  for  the  sake  of  the  beautiful,  and  he  gives  wisely',  ^lat 
is  to  whom  it  is  necessary,  what  is  necessary,  and  when  it  is 
necessary  ;  and  that  too,  gladly  ;  for  a  virtuous  act  is  pleas- 
urable, or  at  least  without  pain;  indeed,  pain  least  belongs 
to  such  acts."  (Ibi:   Nic.  Eth.  IV,  1,  12-13). 

"  OwT  fr^YjfT'.y.ay.o^:  ou  yap  psyaJju/'u^ou  zo  azo/ryrjfj.(r^sozt>, 
a)J.w.}  zs  y.ai  y.axa.^  aXXa  paXlnv  Tzapopay.  Owf  ayOpwzoXoyo'^ : 
ooze  yap  Tzept  dozoo  epet  ooze  TZzpt  izspoo  .  .  .  ooo!  y.ay.oX'  - 
yoQ^  oM(?£  Twv  eyOpwv  et  p.i)  l^i  v[ipvj.  .  .  — The  noble- 
minded  man  is  not  one  to  remember  insults ;  for  it  is  not 
characteristic  of  noble-mindedness  to  store  up  remem- 
brances of  injuries  received,  and  of  other  evils.  Nor 
is  he  known  to  talk  of  others,  for  this  he  will  not  do  of  him- 
self ;  nor  does  he  speak  evil  of  any  body,  not  even  of  his 
enemy,  unless  compelled  to  do  so  in  justice  to  himself." 

(Ibi:  Nic.  Eth.  IV,  3,  30). 

"  ^o  apa  ^ooXoC  a:>  aduEKjdat  p.a).Xov  tj  adtxev^'^  BoXo'.prj-j 
/itv  a>  zywy  oo<^tzzpa\  zi  rf  avayxacov  sif}  adustadai  tj  adixti'j,  iXot- 
p.Yj.'  av  p.aXXov  adixtttrOat  vj  adtxzvj.  Oozoj'^^  ihg  p.zy'.<;zov  Z(ov  xa.y.orj 
zoyya:^tt  o\>  zo  o.i^utvj^  zo  o./^ixziTOai  r^/.tGza  yt  —  Wouldst 
thou  then    rather   be    treated  unjustly  than    treat    another 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Princiides  of  Religion.    119 

unjustly?  I  prefer  neither;  but  if  I  were  compelled 
to  choose  lietween  receiving  an  injury  or  bringing  it  upon 
another,  I  would  every  time  prefer  receiving  injustice  to 
bringing  it  upon  another.  To  act  unjustly  toward  another, 
is  the  greatest  of  all  evils ;  but  to  receive  injustice  from  the 
hands  of  another,  is  the  least."  (Plato:  Gorgias,  4G9). 

'*■  ha/.dUpY^'.J  dz'.j  vj  on?  Oo  5si  dr/~(iij.  A'^ruaxoupytiv  v.a/.twi 
■Ka(Ty(>/ra,  ui/.aurj  rj  ou  (i'./.o.nrj'i  Ouda/xoi^,  To  yap  tzuu  ■/.ii.y.w<i 
TTOiiiv  a-^0 pit)~oo^  TOO  uocxsiv  (luiitv  d'.atfzpzt.  Out  ap  a-^vaSi- 
xtiv  3zi  dUTZ  xuxuj-  a,>T:~o'.e'.y  auSz'^a  a/dp(o-uj>,  <i'j(T  av  v~'.oov 
-aayri  uz  a.uzo).'  —  Is  it  right  to  do  evil  to  a  man  or  not? 
It  is  never  right.  But  if  a  man  suffers  innocently  evil  treat- 
ment, is  if  not  right  to  return  evil  for  evil  ?  It  is  never  right. 
For  to  bring  evil  on  another,  differs  in  nothing  from  acting 
unjustl}'.  A  man  should  not  return  injustice  for  injustice, 
nor  evil  for  evil,  no  matter  what  he  suffers  at  the  hands  of 
Others."  (Ibi:  Crito,  51). 

"  (I'.it  y.cxi  ~a  pz-f  aXa  dpaiizr^iiu'a  /.(V.  ad './.r^  par  a  (TptxpaTZpav  z'.'yat 
yprj  >np.'.%z'.v  xa/.iiv  -acryzvj  rj  dpaaai — Whcrefope  it  must  be 
considered  better  to  suffer  the  greatest  evils  and  injustice, 
than  to  bring  such  upon  others."         (Ibi:  Letters,  VII). 

VIII:   PURITY  ABOVE  ALL  THINGS: 

"  Ou  yap  a/.dXouOzt  rrj  r/doyrj  y.ai  r<i»  (Tup<fzp(rjT'.  ^  apzrr^  j  a^.Xa 
Trj     aptzrj    aptpazzpa    zaoz     axnhnjOz:.  —  A    virtuous   character 

does  not  follow  the  enjoyment  of  pleasure,  and  advantage  ; 
but  pleasure  and  advantage  will  both  follow  the  possession 
of  a  virtuous  character." 

(Aristotle:    Kth.  Meg.  II.   11,  'il.) 


120  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

This  saying  13  equivalent  to  that  of  the  Saviour:  "Seek 
ye  first  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  all  these  things  shall  be 
added  unto  you." 

"  lloXo  yap  xaXXtDv  S(TTt  xat  j3a(7t}.ua>repov  ttjV  (J'o^r^v  s/jcv  eu- 
yyU);i.(r^oo(ro:>    tj     rijv    frtv   too    (nop.aro'i     opav   vjtiji.d-oufiay  —  It 

is   far    more    beautiful    and   kingly    to    see    the   soul    well 
adorned,  than  the  body  richly  attired." 

(Ibi:  Ad  Alex.,  1,  2). 
"  Oo  dsc  S'  ay^dsiv  on  e'Jta  tcov  X^syo/iz.'Mv  no/,  zgtvj  v^  tuj  7ra>?  Xa/x- 
i3au£cv^  av  ~iog  Xarj.l8r/yrjTat  rw  paXlov  ~a.(ryzvj^  oui'j  ii.niytiq  oo  zip 
p.aXlov  -q  0£i  ~po<?  ra^  yafi.zza.'i  z).rj/T'.a^£'/^ :  oo  yap)  £^r;v  :  (jDji.  p.oy- 
Oripia  T-js-  aoTf]  (Jtj  srrr'.v  —  It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  some  of 
these  acts  mentioned  do  not  depend  for  their  vicious  nature, 
on  the  manner  or  degree  of  indulging  in  them  ;  for  an  act  may 
be  in  itself  a  vice.  The  adulterer  is  such,  not  because  he 
approaches  other  men's  wives  more  than  is  necessary;  this 
is  not  the  reason:  for  any  such  act  is  in  itself  adultery." 

(Ibi:  Eud.  Eth.,  II,  3,  14). 

"  liat  [xzksiv  rr^g  aXr^dz'.ag  p.a?2ov  rj  rrj'^  ^"1^9,  xut  Xeyecv  xat 
~pUTTzCv  <pa'>zpajg.  .  .  W9  yap  atTypov  to  (J'£odo<}  ioX.ajSrjijsrat  — 
The  noble  man  cares  for  the  truth  more  than  for  opinion : 
he  shuns  the  false  as  something  base." 

(Ibi:  Eth.  Nico.,  IV,  3,  28;  7,  8). 

" '^rt  oox  ex  yprjp.a~o>j  apzrvj  y.y^izat^  alX"  £^  apzxrfi  ypr^para 
xai  TfDS  U/ada  roig  uyOpMzo'.^;  a~a:^za  xai  iSta  xai  drjpjxna  — 
Virtue,  purity,  does  not  result  from  wealth,  or  possessions  ; 
but  from  virtue  result  possessions,  and  ever}'-  other  good 
which  man  can  possess,  whether  public  or  private." 

(Plato :  Apology,  XVII). 

" 'Ort    00  TO   Zy}''  TTCpt    TtXeiffToo   TrocTjTsov    aXXa    to    so    C^v-^ 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   121 

Our  duty  Is  not  to  labor  for  the  length  of  days  but  for  the 
purity  of  our  lives."  (Ibi:    Crito,  VIII). 

"  MiTa  ziiu  xi/j.do  xui  dc/.aidu  (v/j.r^/  /ja/./jr^  jiz  IjI'.'j  d'.a/.'.>ou>£'j;'.v 
fj  /izO^  n/jAov  ysi/^trda'.  /i.rj    li'./.a'.a   fjduXzuniJz.'oy^   ifi>^yfiz\>-:<i.    oz(7;i.i>'^  7; 

davazd'^  —  I  consider  it  far  more  becoming  me  to  suffer  with 
law  and  justice,  than,  for  the  fear  of  chains  or  death,  to 
agree  with  you  ;  when  your  actions  are  not  in  accordance 
with  the  right  "  (Ihi,  Apology,  XX). 

Oud^    iaUTM    IIUTz    TYj     7Z()?.£'.,    £t     flzX/.zT     tljiia';j.iry-.'.V^    il).A    afitzr^./  — . 

If  we  would  be  happy,  O  noble  Alcibiades,  we  must  obey 
not  the  tyranny,  not  the  city,  not  ourselves,  but  virtue." 

(Ibi:   I  Alcibiades,  XXX). 

IX:    GOD  IS  GOOD: 

^^AyaOd'S  >jv,  ayaOu)  dz  ouSz'.g  uspi  oudzvog  oodzTzoTz  zYyty.izrat 
<pdovo<;'.  TouTou  (f  zXTd'^  wi/  -a>ra  dZi  /j.a/.'.fTra  yzj-rrdai  eiSouXriOr/ 
7iapa-?.rj/7'.a  iaoru).  TauTr^,/  dz  /'cViTsw?  xa'.  xorr/idtj  p.fx).'.fjT  a>  rrc 
apyry^  xupio}TaTr/v  ~ap  a-^riiiioy  cpir/'.pio^)  aTZddzvo/j.zxi^  upOiirara 
arzodzxctr  ay  —  God  is  good  ;  but  to  a  good  being  ill-will  can 
never  arise  toward  anytliing :  besides  this,  he  is  such  that 
he  wishes  to  make  all  things  like  himself.  Any  reasonable 
man  would  most  reasonably  accept  this  Being  as  the  most 
probable  cause  of  creation  and  the  cosmos." 

(Ibi:  Timaeus,  29). 

^'.-J/A'  out'  a~d).z(jOa'.  za  xara  duyaroy :  d~tya'^z'.d:>  yap  r;  r<y 
ayadu)  aei  e.'var  a^ayxr^  :  our  tv  Bzo;^  aura  ItlpunOu:,  zt^j  Q\>r^zr^\> 
(fUfftv    xai    Toydz     zov    Td~dy    TTsp'.-dlz'.    £^     (iyayx7^< — But    it    is 

not  possible  that  all  existing  evil  should  be  destroyed: 
for    of    necessit}^    there   must    ever    be    something   exist- 


122  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

ing  opposite  to  the  Good :  nor  does  any  evil  exist  in  God ; 
but  of  necessity  evil  must  ever  surround  mortal  nature,  and 
this  present  world."  (Ibi:    Theaetetus,  176). 

"/,':  >T  £<TT>.  at<r~sp  ouv  enzi^  (-h(f$  r^  rt  dttov  6  Epiuq^  ouoz:'^  av 
xaxov  f.r,  —  If  this  is  SO,  and  it  certainly  is,  then  Love  is  God, 
or  something  divine  ;  it  could  be  nothing  evil." 

(Ibi:  Phaedrus,  XX). 

"/"o  S^  a/.TjOzg  mds  ^.z^oj/jLe^j  O^og  oudaiirj  (iu<iaiio)<;  afh/.o^^  aXX" 
w?  o'.ov  re  dtxatorarog,  xai  oux  £(Triv  auru)  o/jjicarsfjov  auosv  rj  o?' 
av  7;fj.(ijv  ao  yvjr^-d'.  on  (irxaiozarti^  —  Here  we  will  declare  this 
truth:  it  is  impossible  for  God  to  be  unjust,  on  the  contrary 
he  is  the  most  just;  and  nothing  is  more  like  him  than  the 
man  who  amongst  us  is  the  most  just." 

(Ibi:  Theaetetus,  176) 

"  OuTi  yap  a)Jj>  y.pz'.Tro\>  sazty  ors  xv^Tjitz'.^  z/.t'.\iii  yap  av  tir^  Oti- 
orepo'^^  CUT  t'/zi  (f'jyhr^  (I'jdtv^  our  evdz-g  rwv  a.yjro'j  xaXwv  ou^evo? 
eariv  —  Nor  is  there  anything  stronger  that  moves;  for  then 
would  that  something  be  more  divine ;  nor  has  it  any  base- 
ness in  its  nature,  nor  want  of  any  of  those  beautiful  attri- 
butes belonging  peculiarly  to  itself." 

(Aristotle:   De  Coelo,  I,  9). 

"'0  yap  6-i>g  j3-Xr'.ujv  r/ys""  apsrr^g  xw.  ou  xar  aptrry^  tan  aizoo- 
daiog:  ourvj  p.v^  yap  [it)~ur>  sTra:  fy  a.pzrrj  rao  Bziiu — For 
God  is  better  than  virtue,  nor  is  he  righteous  because 
he  is  virtuous  ;  for  in  that  case  we  should  make  virtue  some- 
thing better  than  God."     (Aristotle:    Eth.  Meg.,  II,  5,  2). 

'■'•  J'.ii  6  Sz<i<i  O.ZI  p'.av  xa.i  u.~).ryj  ^atpzt  r^oo/ry^ :  ou  yap  jKr/ov 
xtvrjffecog  e/rrr^  s^zfiysta  a/J.a  xai  axr^rj(na(;,  xai  r^do-^vj  p.aXX.ov  ev 
yjptpuj.  tan-j  Tj  £v  x'.yr^fjt'.  —  Energy  may  be  said  of  a  thing  at 
rest  as  well  as  in  motion,  and  the  pleasure  associated  with 


A  Philosophical  fnqxiri/  into  the  Principles  of  Reliyioii.    12'^ 

the  former  state  is  even  greater  than  that  associated  with 
the  latter ;  wherefore  the  happiness  of  God  is  one  and  al)- 
solute."  (Aristotle:  Nico.  Eth.  VII,  14,  8). 

^'•O'j/.ii'j./  ayaO<i<;  6  yz  0B<i'}  no  n-yz:  z-  xu:  ).£/-E<ry  6ijt<o.  A /./.a 
/ir/^  oiji>i.i  yt  TMv  uyaOco,'  flla^izixrj.  Aii"  oo./  6  jjxj  /?Aa(3£/>"i',  (3/.'ir- 
Tij;  'd  >h  117,  (i/.a-zzi,  ■/.a:/.i>.>  z:  -mzt  ;  '0  oz  yz  fir^oz-^  za/ov  -w.zi, 
tiud^  av  z:-j(><s  stf}  xaxoo  aiZ'.av  \  (utpthintv  zo  ayada-^  \  A'.zmv  apa 
ttj-pay.a^ ;  Oox  apa  —a\)Z(ov  yz  acz'.ov  to  ayodnv^  a).).a  zorj 
p.z-j    £'j    zyt)'>zoyj   atziov,   zoyy    oz    /.a/.ajv   {r^atz'jry  —  God    Is    gOOd, 

and  tliis  much  must  be  understood.  But  no  good  thing 
is  hurtful.  Can  a  thing  not  hurtful  be  the  cause  of  in- 
jury? Can  that  which  is  not  hurtful,  do  any  evil?  Can 
that  which  does  no  evil,  be  the  cause  of  an}'  evil?  Must  it 
not  be  the  cause  of  happiness?  Not  of  all  things,  therefore, 
is  the  Good  the  cause ;  but  only  of  those  things  which  are  as 
they  should  bo,  and  not  of  the  evil." 

(Plato:   Civitas,  379)- 

"  I  am  the  journey  of  the  good  ;  the  comforter  ;  the  crea- 
tor ;  the  witness;  the  resting  place;  the  asj'lum,  and  the 
friend.  .  .  I  am  the  emblem  of  the  immortal,  and  of  the 
incorruptible ;  of  the  eternal,  of  justice,  and  of  endless 
bliss."  (Vedas:  Dialogues  of  Kreeshna  and  Arjoou). 

"He  encircled  all,  bright,  incorporeal,  scatheless,  without 
muscles,  pure,  untouched  by  evil ;  a  seer,  wise,  omnipresent, 
self-existent;  he  disposed  all  things  rightly  for  eternal 
years."  (Ibi:   Vagasaneyi-Samhita-Upanisbad), 

X :  GOI^  IS  IMMUTABLE  : 

"  I  la/  Dti  zo  y.aXuK;  £/'>■',  ij  <fjaz'.  Tj  Tzy^rj  rj  aii(fozzpo'.(T^  ^^'^X' 
(TZT^j  fj.zza,3o).rjV   u-'  a).).o-)  -.ilizyzza'..      A?J.a  fir^v  6  dzo'^  ys  xai  ra 


\-2i  Essaj/s  on  God  (ind  Man, 

rou  0Zi)O  za)/7rj  ao'.ara  £/;-'.      Taurrj  iitv  otj   r^/.'.nza  av  T:<t).Xa.<;  jion- 

?.o'.iio-/ :  a)X  w?  £<).'xr,  xa?.).'./TTii^  xai  apia~o<s  wj  £t9  to  dv^o~<r> 
ixsvzi  ati  d-hi)^  fj  TTj  (hiTo'i  >fi>f>(frj — Everything  perfectly 
constituted  either  in  nature  or  in  art  or  in  both,  admits 
of  the  least  change  by  another.  But  God  and  every- 
thing pertaining  to  him  are  perfect.  Because  of  this^ 
in  no  sense  could  God  have  many  forms.  It  is,  therefore, 
impossible  that  God  should  wish  to  change  himself.  On  the 
contrar}^  he  being,  as  it  appears,  most  perfect  and  the  best, 
remains  according  to  his  own  power  in  his  own  form  forever 
absolutely  free  from  change."  (Ihi:  Civitas,  381). 

"  'Pfjytpo'j  o.pa  ors  our;  zo—o(^  oorz  y.tvty^  oure  yp<r^(i<;  eazt  £:cu- 
Oz,i :  S'jirzzp  OUT  ev  Tomp  Taxzi  ~z(puy.tv^  nurz  ypoyo'^  aoTo.  Tzotzt 
yripa(t7.z'.'j^  olxT  z/ttcv  audzv(i<}  o'jflzp.'.a  p.ZTa,3(i/.rj  Tioy  n—zp  zr^'j  £~oj~ 
Tazu)  TZTaYP-Zvuj'j  (popw^^  aAx'  a'^aXhi'.ujTa  xat.  a-aQ-q  tj^'j  apiOTT^v 
tyi)\>Ta  Cwijy  xa;  r>jy  wjTap/.tciTaTrfj  8taTz?.zt  tov  a-rr^TU  (v.wjo.  —  It 
is  evident  that  beyond  it  there  can  be  neither  place  nor  void, 
nor  time.  Wherefore  it  cannot  be  said  to  occupy  place,, 
nor  can  time  make  it  grow  old,  nor  can  it  Miffer  any  change 
through  any  most  outside  -  forces,  but  unchanging  and  unaf- 
fectei,  having  life  the  best  and  most  self-sufficient,  it  con- 
tinues through  the  endless  ages." 

(Aristotle:  De  Coelo,  1,  0,  14). 

XI:  THE  YOUNG  SHOULD  BE  EDUCATED  WITH 
GREAT  CARE : 

"  Eaj  ot  //://ovra!,  pipziaQai  to.  -pixn^xo'^Ta  euOu?  £x  TzacSiu^^ 
a-^fJpz'.aQ^  (TiDcfpoya';^  ofT'.ouc^  zXzvBzpooQ^  xai  to.  TO'.auTa  —rvjTa^  to. 
S  w^zktuQzpa  [irjTS  Tzoieiv  pr^TS   8st>oug  eiyat  pcpr^fTuffOat,  prjrT  a)J.a 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  PriHciidea  of  Religion.    125 

ivffiv^  rwv  (I'.nyjmr/^  ha  p.r^  z/.  rv^s"  ii-'-ivtifinix;  rou  £:>«£  azii/u.onwf!'../  — 
If  they  imitate,  let  them  imitate  those  things  which  are  be- 
coming to  them,  even  from  their  childhood :  let  them  imitate 
the  courageous,  the  prudent,  the  devoutly  reverent,  the 
liberal,  and  all  sucli ;  hut  they  must  not  be  allowed  to  do  the 
illiberal,  nor  become  skilful  at  imitating  it,  or  any  other 
vice ;  in  order  that  thc}'  ma}'  never  take  [)leasure  in  vice  as 
a  result  of  imitation."  (Plato:  Civitas,  111,395). 

XTI:  MAN'S  DUTY  SUMMARIZED: 

"Thou  sliall  love  the  Lord  th}'-  God  with  all  thy 
heart,  and  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy  mind.  This  is 
the  first  and  great  commandment.  And  the  second  is  like 
unto  it;  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thj-self.  On  these 
two  commandments  hang  all  the  law  and  the  prophets." 
These  words  were  given  b}'  Christ  to  those  who  called  him, 
master;  but  all  that  is  contained  in  them,  was  given  hun- 
dreds of  years  before  his  birth,  even  by  the  two  following 
teachers.     These  also  were  called  by  their  disciples,  master. 

(I)  :     ON  MAN'S  DUTY  TO  GOD  : 

"  He  who  offends  against  Heaven,  has  none  to  whom  he 
can  pray."  (Confucius:  Analects,  III,  13). 

"Without  recognising  the  ordinances  of  Heaven,  it  "-s 
impossible  to  be  a  superior  man." 

(Confucius:  Ibi,  XX,  3). 
"  I  consider  my  not  being  present  at  the  sacrifice,  as  if  I 
did  not  sacrifice."  (Confucius:  Ibi,  III,  12). 

"  My  praying  has  been  for  a  long  time." 

(Con:    Ibi,  VII,  34). 


1:26  Essaf^s  on  God  and  Man, 

"While  Heaven  does  not  let  the  cause  of  truth  perish, 
what  can  the  people  of  K'wang  do  to  me?  " 

(Con:   Ibi,  IX,  5). 

"Death   and  life   have   their  determined   appointments; 
riches  and  honor  depend  upon  Heaven." 

(Con:  Ibi,  Xn,  5). 

"I  do  not  murmur  against  heaven." 

(Con:  Ibi,  XIV,  37). 

"The  superior  man  stands  in  awe  of  the  ordinances  of 
Heaven."  (Con  :  Ibi,  XVI,  8). 

"  He  who  delights  in  Heaven,  affects  with  his  love  and 
protection  the  whole  empire."  (Mencius:  I,  II,  3), 

"As  to  the  accomplishment  of  the  great  result,  that  is 
with  Heaven."  (Mencius:  I,  II,  14). 

"Be  always  studious  to  be  in  harmony  with  the  ordi- 
nances of  God."  (Mencius:  I,   II,  2). 

"They  who  accord  with  Heaven  are  preserved;  they  who 
rebel  against  Heaven,  perish."  (Mencius:  IV,  I,  7). 

(II. )     OX  MAN'S  DUTY  TO  HIS  PARENTS : 

"  In  serving  his  parents  a  son  may  remonstrate  with  them, 
but  gently ;  when  he  sees  that  they  do  not  incline  to  follow 
his  advice,  he  shows  an  increased  degree  of  reverence,  but 
does  not  abandon  his  purpose  ;  and  should  they  punish  him, 
lie  does  not  allow  himself  to  murmur." 

(Confucius:   Analects,  IV,  18). 

"There  are  your  father  and  elder  brothers  to  be  con- 
sulted." (Confucius:  Ibi,  XI,  21). 

"  From  them  you  learn  the  more  immediate  duty  of  serv- 
ing one's  father;  and  the  remoter  one  of  serving  one's 
prince."  (Confucius:   Ilii,  XVII,  9). 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Princiide^  of  Religion.    127 

"Of  all  wliicli  a  filial  son  can  attain  to,  there  is  nothing 
greater  than  his  honoring  his  parents." 

(Mencius:  V,  I,  4). 

"If  one  is  not  obedient  to  his  parents,  he  will  not  be 
true  to  friends."     (Mencius:    Doctrine  of  the  Mean,  XX). 

"From  the  first  birth  of  mankind  till  now,  never  has  any 
one  led  children  to  attack  their  parents  and  succeeded  in 
his  design."  (Mencius:   11,1,5). 

"  When  a  father  calls,  the  answer  must  be  witiiout  a 
moment's  hesitation."  (Mencius:  11,11,2). 

"The  richest  fruit  of  benevolence  is  this,  the  service  of 
one's  parents."  (Mencius:  IV,  I,  27). 

(III)  :     PURITY  OF  HEARI  : 

"Riches  adorn  a  house,  and  virtue  adorns  the  person." 

(Confucius:  Great  Learning,  VI). 
"  Tszc-chang  asked  Confucius  about  perfect  virtue.  Con- 
fucius replied :  To  be  able  to  practice  five  things  every- 
where under  Heaven  constitutes  perfect  virtue.  He  begged 
to  ask  what  they  were  and  was  told,  gravity,  generosity  of 
soul,  sincerity,  earnestness,  and  kindness." 

(Confucius:  Analects,  XVII,  G). 

(IV)  :     DUTY  TO  OUR  NEIGHBOR : 

"  What  I  do  not  wish  men  to  do  to  me,  I  also  wish  not  to 
do  to  them."  (Confucius:  Ibi,  V.  11). 

"Do  not  to  others  as  you  would  not  wish  done  to  your- 
self." (Confucius:  Ibi,  XII,  2). 

"Love  all  men."  (Confucius:  Ibi,  XII,  22). 

"Recompense  injury  with  justice." 

(Confucius:    Ibi,  XIV,  00). 


128  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

"Is  tbere  one  word  which  may  serve  as  the  rule  of  prac- 
tice for  all  one's  life?  The  master  said:  Is  not  reciprocity 
such  a  word?  What  you  do  not  want  done  to  j^ourself,  do 
not  do  to  others."  (Confucius:   Ibi,  XV,  23). 

"Find  enjoyment  in  speaking  of  the  goodness  of  others." 

(Confucius:  Ibi,  XVI,  5). 

"We  are  to  love  all  without  difference  of  degree ;  but 
the  manifestation  of  love  must  begin  with  our  parents." 

(Mencius:  III,  I,  5). 

"The  superior  man  is  lovingly  disposed  to  people  gener- 
ally, and  kind  to  creatures."  (Mencius:  VI,  II,  45). 

(V:)     ON  CONTENTMENT: 

"With  a  single  bamboo  dish  of  rice,  a  single  gourd,  a 
dish  of  drink,  and  living  in  a  narrow  lane,  he  did  not  allow 
hisjoy  to  be  affected  by  it."     (Confucius:  Analects,  VI,  9). 

"  The  superior  man  does  not  murmur  against  Heaven  nor 
grumble  against  men." 

(Confucius :  Doctrine  of  the  Mean,  XIV). 

(VI):     ON  POPULARITY: 

"  When  the  multitude  hate  a  man,  it  is  necessary  to  ex- 
amine into  the  case :  when  the  multitude  like  a  man,  it  is 
necessary  to  examine  into  the  case." 

(Confucius:  Analects,  XV,  27). 

(VII):     ON  FAMILY  INFLUENCE: 

"  Thus  we  see  how  the  government  depends  on  the  regu- 
lation of  the  family."  (Confucius:  Great  Learn.  IX). 


A  Pliilosophical  Iii'jiiir;/  into  tlie  J^rinriples  of  Religion.   120 

(VIII):     ON  SPEAKINC;  THE  TRUTH: 

'•To   conceal   rescntracnt,    aojalnst    a  person  and   appear 

friendly  with  him,  I  am  ashamed  of  it." 

(Coiif Ileitis:   Analects,  V,  24). 

"  They  who  know  the  truth  are  not  equal  to  those  who 
love  it,  and  thej'  who  love  it  are  not  equal  to  those  who  find 
pleasure  in  it."  (Confucius:  Ibi,  VI,  18). 

'•  Let  his  words  be  sincere  and  truthful,  and  his  actions 
honorable  and  careful."  (Confucius:  Ibi,  XV,  5). 

"  The  superior  man  in  regard  to  his  speech  is  anxious  that 
it  should  be  sincere."  (Confucius:  Ibi,  XVI,  10). 

"  The  attainment  of  sincerity  is  the  way  of  Heaven  ;  sin- 
cerity is  the  way  to  Heaven." 

(Confucius:  Doct.  of  Mean,  XX). 

"The  individual  possessed  of  the  most  complete  sincerity, 
is  like  a  spirit,"     (Confucius:  Doct.  of  the  Mean,  XXIV). 

(IX):      "HUMILITY: 

"  I  should  not  like  to  boast  of  my  excellence,  nor  make  a 
display  of  my  meritorious  deeds." 

(Confucius:  Analects,  V,  25). 
"The  superior  man  is  distressed  by  his  want  of  ability, 
he  is  not  distressed  by  man'  not  knowing  him." 

(Confucius:  Ibi,  XIV,  32;  XV,  18). 

(X)  :     "  RIGHTEOUSNESS : 

"I  do  not  murmur  against  Heaven.  But  there  is  Hea- 
ven,—  that  knows  me."  (Confucius:  Ibi,  XIV,  37). 

"I  have  never  seen  a  man  die  from  treading  in  the  course 
of  virtue."  (Confucius,  Ibi,  XV,  34). 


loO  Es,says  on   God  and  Man, 

"The  superior  man  holds  righteousness  to  be  of  the  high- 
est importance."  (Confucius:  Ibi,  XVII,  23). 

"  Hold  faithfulness  and  sincerity  as  first  principles ;  have 
no  friends  not  equal  to  yourself." 

(Confucius:  Ibi,  IX,  24). 

"  If  you  can  one  day  renovate  j^ourself,  do  so  from  day  to 
day  ;  j-ea,  let  there  be  daily  renovation." 

(Confucius:   Great  Learning,  II). 

"  What  trul}'  is  within,  willbe  manifest  without ;  therefore 
the  superior  man  must  be  watchful  over  himself,  when  he  is 
alone."  (Confucius:  Great  Learning,  VI). 

"  In  a  state,  pecuniary  gain  is  not  to  1)e  considered  to  be 
prosperity ;  but  its  prosperity  will  be  found  in  righteous- 
ness." (Confucius:  Great  Learning,  X). 

"As  to  the  accomplishment  of  the  great  result,  what  is 
that  to  you,  O  prince;  be  strong  to  do  good.  That  is  all 
your  business."  (Mencius:   I,  II,  14). 

"  Benevolence  is  the  tranquil  habitation  of  man,  and  right- 
eousness is  his  straight  path."  (Mencius:  IV,  I,  10). 

"  So  I  like  life  and  I  also  like  rigliteousness  ;  if  I  cannot 
keep  the  two  together,  I  will  let  life  go  and  choose  righteous- 
ness." (Mencius:  VI,  I,  10). 

"  The  regular  path  of  virtue  is  to  be  pursued  without  any 
bend,  and  from  no  view  to  emolument." 

(Mencius:  VII,  II,  33). 
(XI):  BENEVOLENCE: 

"  He  whose  goodness  is  part  of  himself,  is  what  is  called 
a  real  man."  (Mencius:  VII,  II,  25). 

"  Benevolence  is  the  most  honorable  dignity  conferred  by 
Heaven,  and  the  quiet  home  in  which  man  should  dwell." 

(Mencius:   II,  I,  7). 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   131 

"He  who  seeks  to  be  rich,  will  not  be  benevolent;  he 
who  wishes  to  be  benevolent,  will  not  be  rich. 

(Mencius:    III,  I,  3). 
"  Benevolence  is  man's  mind,  and  righteousness  is  man's 
path.     How  lamentable  it  is  to  neglect  the  path  and   not 
pursue  it;  to  lose  this  mind  and  not  to  seek  it  again." 

(Mencius:  VI,  I,  2). 

"  Benevolence  is  the  distinguishing  characteristic  of  man. 

As  embodied  in  man's  conduct,  it  is  called  the  path  of  duty." 

(Mencius:  VH,  II,  10). 
"  Let  your  majesty  also  say  benevolence  and  righteous- 
ness, and  these  shall  be  the  only  theme.     Why  must  you  use 
the  word,  profit?  (Mencius:  I,  I,  1). 

(XII):  ON  MURDER: 

"  Suppose  the  case  of  a  murderer,  and  that  one  asks  you, 
may  this  one  be  put  to  death.     I  will  answer  him,  he  may." 

(Mencius:  II,  II,  8). 

(XIII)  :  RELATION  OF  WIFE  TO  THE  HUSBAND : 

"  You  are  going  to  your  home,  you  must  be  careful.  Do 
not  disobey  your  husband."  (Mencius:  11,11,2). 

(XIV:)  THE  GREAT  MAN: 

"  To  dwell  in  the  wide  house  of  the  world,  to  stand  in  the 
correct  seat  of  the  world,  Snd  to  walk  in  the  great  path  of 
the  world ;  when  he  obtains  his  desire  for  office,  to  practice 
his  principles  for  the  good  of  the  people  ;  and  when  that  de- 
sire is  disappointed,  to  practice  them  alone  ;  to  be  above  the 
power  of  riches  and  honor  to  make  dissipated,  of  poverty 


132  Essa>/s  on  God  and  Man, 

and  iiK-au  condition  to  make  swerve  from  principle,  and  of 
power  au(,l  force  to  make  bend:  — these  cliaracteristics  con- 
stitute the  great  man."  (Mencius:  III,  II,  2). 

"  Tlie  great  man  is  he  who  does  not  lose  his  child's  heart." 

(Mencius:  IV,  II,  12). 

"  And  what  was  their  one  aim?  We  must  answer, —  to  be 
perfectly  virtuous."  (Mencius:  VI,  II,  6). 

"  The  superior  man  is  easy  to  serve,  and  difficult  to  please. 
If  you  try  to  serve  him  in  any  way  which  is  not  accordant 
with  right,  he  will  not  be  pleased  " 

(Confucius:  Analects,  XIII,  24). 

"The  way  of  the  superior  man  is  threefold,  but  I  am  not 
equal  to  it.  Virtuous,  he  is  free  from  anxieties  ;  wise,  he  is 
free  from  perplexities ;   bold,  he  is  free  from  fear." 

(Confucius:   Ibi,  XIV,  30). 

"The  superior  man  in  everything  considers  righteousness 
to  be  essential.  He  performs  it  according  to  the  rules  of 
propriety.  He  brings  it  forth  in  humility.  He  completes  it 
with  sincerity."  (Confucius:  Ibi,  XV,   17). 

"The  object  of  the  superior  man  is  truth." 

(Confucius:   Ibi,  XV,  31). 

"  Anciently  men  had  three  failings  which  now  perhaps  are 
not  to  be  found :  The  highnaindedness  of  antiquity  showed 
itself  in  disregard  of  small  things  ;  the  highmindedness  of  the 
present  day  shows  itself  in  wild  license.  The  stern  dignity 
of  antiquity  showed  itself  in  grave  reserve  ;  the  stern  dignity 
of  the  present  day  shows  itself  in  quarrelsome  perverseness. 
The  stui)idity  of  antiquity  showed  itself  in  straightforward- 
ness ;  the  stupidity  of  the  present  day  shows  itself  in  sheer 
deceit."  (Confucius:   Ibi,  XVII,  IG). 


A  Philosophical  Inquiri/  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.    133 

"  Tlie  faults  of  tlie  superior  man  are  like  the  eclipses  of 
the  sua  and  moon.  He  has  his  faults,  and  all  men  see  them  ; 
he  changes,  and  all  men  look  up  to  him." 

(Confucius:   Il)i,  XIX,  21). 

"  Without  recognizing  the  ordinances  of  Heaven,  it  is  im- 
possible to  be  a  superior  man."     (Confucius:  Ibi,  XX,  3). 

"  The  superior  man  stands  in  awe  of  the  ordinances  of 
Heaven."  (Confucius:  Ibi,  XVI,  8). 

"It  is  the  way  of  the  superior  man  to  prefer  the  conceal- 
ment of  virtue,  while  it  dail^- becomes  more  illuslrious;  it 
is  the  waj'  of  the  mean  man  to  seek  notoriety,  while  he  daily 
goes  more  and  more  to  ruin." 

(Confucius:  Doctrine  of  the  Mean,  33). 

"  There  is  a  nobility  of  Heaven,  and  there  is  a  nobility  of 
man.  Benevolence,  righteousness,  self- consecration,  and 
fidelit}',  with  unwearied  jo}'  in  these  virtues,  —  these  consti- 
tute the  nobility  of  Heaven."  (Mencius:  VI,  I,  16). 

"  When  looking  up,  the  superior  man  has  no  occasion  for 
shame  before  Heaven  ;  and  below,  he  has  no  occasion  to 
blush  before  men."  (Mencius:  VII,  I,  20). 

(XV:)  SINCERITY: 

"  Sincerity  is  the  way  of  Heaven ;  to  think  how  to  be 
sincere  is  the  way  of  man."  (Mencius:  IV,  I,  12). 

(XVI):  THOU  SHALT  NOT  STEAL : 

"  Here  is  a  man  who  ever}'  day  appropriates  some  of  his 
neighbor's  fowls.     Such  is  not  the  way  of  a  good  man." 

(Mencius:    III,  II,  8). 

"To  take  what  one  has  not  a  right  to,  is  contrary  to 
righteousness."  (^lencius:  A'll,  I.  23). 


134  Essciijs  on  God  and  Man, 

(XVII):  FRIENDSHIP: 

"  There  are  three  friendships  which  are  advantageous,  and 
three  which  are  injurious.  Friendship  with  the  upright; 
friendship  with  the  sincere  ;  and  friendship  with  the  man  of 
much  observation: — these  are  advantageous.  Friendship 
with  the  man  of  specious  airs;  fricndsliip  with  the  insinuat- 
icgly  soft ;  and  friendship  with  the  glib-tongued :  —  ilicse 
are  injurious."  (Confucius:  Analects,  XVI,  4). 

(XVIII):     POVERTY: 

"To  be  poor  without  murmuring  is  difficult.  To  be  rich 
without  being  proud  is  eas}'." 

(Confucius:  Analects,  XIV.  2). 

(XIX):     ON  SPEAKING: 

"  For  one  word  a  man  is  often  deemed  to  be  wise,  and  for 
one  word  he  is  often  deemed  to  be  foolish.  AVe  ought  to  be 
careful  indeed  in  what  we  say." 

(Confucius:   Analects,  XIX,  25). 

(XX):     ON  EXAMPLE: 

"If  a  man  himself  do  not  walk  in  the  right  path,  it  will 
not  be  walked  in  even  by  his  wife  and  children." 

(Mencius:  VII,  II,  9). 
(XXI):     ON  DILIGENCE: 

"Heaven  in  the  production  of  things  is  surely  bountiful 
to  them  according  to  their  qualities.  Hence  the  tree  that  is 
flourishing,  it  nourishes;  while  that  which  is  ready  to  fall,  it 
overthi'ows."      (Confucius:   Doctrine  (jf  the  Mean,  XVII) 


A  Philosophicnl  Inquii"/  into  th"  Principles  of  Religiou.    135 

(XXII):     MAN  AND  THE  LOWER  ANIMALS: 

"  That  whereby  man  differs  from  the  lower  animals  is  but 
small.  The  mass  of  people  cast  it  away,  wliile  superior 
men  preserve  it."  (Mencius:  IV,  II,  19). 

<XXIII):     ON  DUTY: 

"  Let  a  man  not  do  what  his  own  sense  of  righteousness 
tells  him  not  to  do,  and  let  him  not  desire  what  his  sense  of 
righteousness  tells  him  not  to  desire.  To  act  thus  is  all  he 
has  to  do."  (Mencius:  VII,  I,  17). 

"Death  sustained  in  the  discharge  of  one's  duty  may  cor- 
rectly be  ascribed  to  the  appointment  of  Heaven." 

(Mencius:  VII,  I,  2). 

"The  superior  man  and  the  determined  scholar  will  not 
seek  to  live  at  the  expense  of  injuring  their  virtue  ;  the}'  will 
even  sacrifice  their  lives  to  preserve  their  virtue  complete." 

(Confucius:  Analects,  XV,  8). 

"  Between  father  and  son,  there  should  be  affection;  be- 
tween sovereign  and  minister,  righteousness  ;  between  hus- 
band and  wife,  attention  to  tlieir  separate  functions;  between 
old  and  young,  a  proper  order;  and  between  friends,  fidel- 
ity." (Mencius:  III,  I,  4). 

"When  a  person  considers  the  depths  of  wisdom  contained 
in  the  preceding  excerpts,  it  is  hardly  to  be  wondered  at,  that 
we  find  written  the  following  eulogy:  "  Since  there  were 
living  men  until  now,  there  never  was  another  Confucius. 
.  .  .  From  the  })irth  of  mankind  until  now,  there  never 
has  been  one  so  complete  as  Confucius." 

(Mencius:   II,  I,  2). 


13G  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

d:  CONCLUDING      THOUGHTS      ON      THIS     COM- 
PARISON : 

Briefl}^  reviewing  our  work  of  comparison,  we  may  say 
that  the  spirit  of  the  Vedas  runs  through  the  whole : 

"  Those  who  know  the  High  Brahman,  the  vast,  hidden  in 
the  bodies  of  all  creatures,  and  alone  enveloping  everything, 
as  the  Lord,  they  become  immortal.  .  .  .  He  is  the  one 
ruler  of  many.  The  wise  who  perceive  him  within  their  self, 
to  them  belongs  eternal  happiness,  not  to  others." 

We  have  seen  that  for  ages  before  the  coming  of  Christ, 
God  had  been  worshipped  as  th.e  Creator,  the  Father,  the 
Light  of  the  world,  the  Fountain  of  virtue,  the  Saviour  and 
ruler  of  men,  as  the  only  wise  and  good  Being,  as  displeased 
with  the  wicked  and  favorable  to  the  righteous,  as  looking 
to  the  heart  and  regarding  not  the  person ;  that  in  those 
times  not  less  than  now,  were  men  exhorted  to  "  seek  first 
the  kingdom  of  God,"  to  be  pure,  liberal,  forgiving,  temper- 
ate, chaste,  truthful,  sincere ;  nor  was  the  dut}'  of  looking 
carefully  to  tlie  education  of  children,  any  less  plainly  set 
forth  then  than  now. 

It  is  needless  to  make  further  comparison.  Suffice  it  to 
say  that  we  have  no  doubt  that  every  moral  doctrine  taught 
by  the  Savior,  has  its  equivalent  in  the  utterances  of  moral 
teachers  who  had  preceded  him.  Nor  need  we  hesitate  in 
saying  further,  that  every  doctrine  found  in  the  Scriptures, 
which  can  by  a  reasonable  man  be  held  necessary  to  the 
building  up  of  a  soul  in  the  image  of  God,  may  be  found 
scattered  through  the  religious  teachings  of  the  world.  Thus 
has  the  indwelling  God  revealed  himself  through  common 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   137 

symbols,  and  in  a  language  universally  understood.  By  this 
common  revelation  of  the  Universal  God,  must  every  so- 
called  particular  revelation  be  judged;  and  in  this  common 
and  universal  revelation,  liave  we  the  highest  knowledge  of 
ourselves  and  of  God.  Those  who  carr}^  out  the  teachings 
of  this  Universal  Voice  speaking  thus  audibly  to  the  human 
heart,  shall  most  certainly  enter  into  the  enjoyment  of  what- 
ever happiness  the  liereafter  has  laid  up  in  the  bosom  of  God. 
Let  us  not  be  deceived :  out  of  every  nation,  kindred  and 
tongue,  those  that  do  righteousness,  are  righteous ;  and 
those  only  do  the  will  of  the  Father  who  is  in  heaven.  The 
righteous  shall  be  righteous;  the  unjust  shall  be  unjust. 
Comparing  the  teachings  of  Christianily  with  those  of  other 
religious  systems,  of  Christian  writers  with  those  of  non- 
Christian  writers,  we  find  much  that  is  common,  little  that  is 
peculiar.  All  admit  that  to  know  and  love  God  is  to  attain 
the  highest  end  of  all  human  activity: 

We  are  warranted  in  saying  that  the  belief  in  immortality, 
rewards  and  punislimenls,  pra3-er,  mediation,  sacrifice,  priest- 
hood, and  temple,  are  common  to  all  religions  ;  and  that  all  re- 
ligious systems  have  scattered  through  them  nuggets  of  gold, 
precious  diamonds  imperishable  and  beautiful,  wliich  adorn- 
ing the  believer,  shed  upon  him  a  brighter  lustre,  permeate 
him  with  energ}',  and  strengthen  him  with  hope.  However 
primitive  the  religion  may  be,  it  serves  to  l)ind  the  soul  to 
God,  and  strengthen  the  heart  to  bear  the  evils  of  life  ;  liow- 
ever  famous  and  renowned  the  irreligious  man  may  be,  at 
most  he's  but  a  house,  beautiful  and  stately,  but  where  no 
voice  is  heard  and  death  reigns. 

"Though  wit  may  flash  from  fluent  lii)s,  and  mirth  distract 
the  breast: 


138  Essays  on  God  and  Man^ 

Though  mid-night  hours  that  3ield  no  more  their  former 
hope  of  rest ; 

'Tis  but  as  ivy  leaves  around  the  ruined  turret  wreath, 

All  green  and  wildly  fresh  without  but  worn  and  grey  be- 
neath. 

Oh,  could  I  feel  as  I  have  felt  or  be  what  I  have  been, 

Or  weep  as  I  could  once  have  wept  o'er  man\'  a  banished 
scene, 

As  springs  in  deserts  found  seem  sweet,  all  brackish  though 
they  be. 

So  midst  the  withered  wastes  of  life,  those  tears  would  flow 
to  me."  (Byron). 

D :  THE  GENERAL  EVOLUTION  OF  THE  CONCEP- 
TION OF  GOD : 

That  religion  is  a  work  of  Evolution  the  writer  himself  has 
no  doubt.  I  know  well  that  there  are  not  a  few  good-mean- 
ing men  who,  admitting  the  claims  of  P>olutionists  in  general, 
nevertheless  hold  that  in  the  case  of  man  at  least  miraculous 
intervention,  special  creation,  must  be  assumed.  For  such 
an  assumption  I  myself  am  convinced  that  there  is  no  ground 
whatever.  Between  the  organic  and  inorganic  worlds  the 
dividing  line  is  indiscernible.  Tlie  sciences  do  not  run  in 
parallel  lines  ;  they  overlap  ;  fade  away  one  into  the  other. 
In  the  study  of  mental  phenomena  the  psychologist  is  unable 
to  say  where  its  first  manifestation  appears.  There  is  no 
animal,  however  low  in  organization,  that  does  not  give  evi- 
dence of  mind.  In  man  mind  covers  a  large  area.  In  quan- 
tity if  not  in  quality,  human  intelligence  is  very  greatly 
superior  to  the  intelligence  of  any  other  animal ;  but  in  the 


A  Philo>iOphiiiil  TiKinirii  in!o  the  Pri  net  ides  of  liehgion.    139 

explanation  of  this  fact  there  is  no  need  of  a  special-creation 
liypothesis.  1  cannot  but  agree  with  Spencer  when  he  says : 
"  This  supernatural  genesis  of  the  adjustment  is  alleged 
because  no  natural  genesis  has  been  assigned.  The  hypo- 
thesis (of  special  creation)  has  not  a  single  fact  to  rest 
upon It  is  supported  by  no  evidence  what- 
ever. ...  So  far  as  the  facts  go  the  supposition  is 
wholly  at  variance  with  them.  .  .  .  Belief  in  special 
creation  belongs  to  a  family  of  beliefs  which  have  one  by 
one  after  another  been  destroyed  by  advancing  knowlerlge. 
Many  wlio  have  in  all  else  abandoned  the  aboriginal  theory 
of  things,  still  hold  this  remnant  of  the  aboriginal  theoiy. 
Ask  any  tolerably-informed  man  whether  he  accepts  the 
cosmogony  of  the  Indians  or  the  Greeks,  or  the  Hebrews, 
and  he  will  regard  the  question  as  next  to  an  insult.  Yet 
one  element  (belief  in  special  creation)  he  likely  retains : 
not  liearing  in  mind  its  origin.  Catechise  him,  and  he  is 
forced  to  confess  that  it  was  put  into  his  mind  in  childhood, 
as  one  portion  of  a  stor}-  which  as  a  whole  he  has  long  since 
rejected.  The  old  Hebrew  idea  that  God  takes  clay  and 
moulds  a  new  creature  is  probably  too  grossly  anthropomor- 
phic to  be  accepted  by  any  modern  defender  of  the  special- 
creation  doctrine.  The  belief  in  special  creiition  is  a  belief 
that  arose  among  men  during  the  profoundest  darkness.  It 
i>!  without  a  solitary  established  fact  on  which  to  stand.  .  .  . 
It  is  worthless  by  its  deiivation  ;  worthless  in  its  intrinsic 
adherence;  worthless  as  absolutely  without  evidence.  .  .  . 
We  must  consider  it,  as  ctninting  for  nothing  in  opposition  to 
any  other  hypothesis  respecting  the  origin  of  organic  beings." 
(Psychol,  r.  419-424;  Biol.  I,  334-345). 


140  Ei^says  on  God  and  3fan, 

For  the  derivation  of  human  intelligence  we  have  a  reason- 
able hypothesis  given  us  in  the  principles  of  Evolution.  In 
such  an  evolution  we  have  not  to  consider  the  experience  of 
a  single  individual,  but  an  infinity  of  experiences;  and  "It 
is  an  unavoidable  corollary  that  an  infinity  of  experiences 
will  produce  a  psychical  relation  that  is  indissoluble." 

The  Bishop  of  Carlisle  very  properly  says,  speaking  of 
the  creative  history,  "  The  literal  theory  must  be  simply  and 
completely  given  up,  as  in  the  very  nature  of  things  impos- 
sible." 

Says  Prof.  Max  Mueller,  speaking  of  the  origin  of  lan- 
guage, "  We  require  no  miracle  at  all ;  all  that  seems  mirac- 
ulous in  language  is  perfectly  natural  and  intelligible ;  it 
certainly  does  not  appeal  to  any  miraculous  interference." 
("Nature  "  for  June,  July,  1887). 

I  have  given  sufficient  evidence  in  other  portions  of  this 
dissertation  to  prove  the  fact  that  the  scientific  world,  as 
such,  accepts  the  principles  of  Evolution.  Indeed,  I  do  not 
think  that  Sir  Lyon  Playfair  was  guilty  of  exaggeration  whea 
at  the  dinner  given  in  honor  of  Prof.  Tyndall,  July  6th., 
1887,  he  stated  that  the  theory  of  Evolution  stands  as  a 
principle  of  science  side  by  side  with  the  principles  or  laws 
of  Universal  Gravitation  and  the  Conservation  of  Force. 
There  are  men  tolerably  well  educated  who  do  not  accept 
the  principles  of  Evolution ;  but  in  every  case  their  unwill- 
ingness to  accept  the  truths  of  Evolution  may  be  referred  to 
scientific  ignorance,  self-interest,  or  prejudice. 

I  have  shown  that  the  intelligent  man  of  a  scientific  turn  of 
mind,  has  never  at  any  time  witnessed  any  interference  with 
the  established  laws  of  nature ;  that  the  scientific  woild  re- 


A  P/iilosophi-al  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.    141 

jects  in  toto,  all  miracles  whatever,  as  arisint^  in  a  dark  and 
credulous  age,  as  at  all  times  rejected  by  the  scientific  mind, 
as  contrary  to  the  laws  of  nature,  contrary  to  human  expe- 
rience, and  as  in  no  case  substantiated  b^-  any  evidence  at 
all  proportionate  to  the  importance  of  the  thing  to  be  sub- 
stantiated. We  must  not,  we  cannot,  look  to  miracles  to 
prove  the  truth  of  a  religion.  All  religions  arc  professedly 
founded  on  miracles ;  and  where  the  people  are  sulficiently 
ignorant,  all  religious  teachers,  of  whatever  faith  thej''  may 
be,  still  continue  their  miraculous  workings.  As  Christians 
ascribe  the  miraculous  works  of  the  teachers  and  founders 
of  other  faiths  to  the  devil  and  imposture ;  so  scientists  as- 
cribe all  miracles  whatever,  whether  in  the  Christian  church 
or  elsewhere,  to  ignorance.  They  take  their  rise  in  impos- 
■i  ture  or  superstition,  and  survive  only  in  ignorance.  The 
scientific  world,  and  this  means  the  modern  world,  finds  in 
the  assertion  that  a  certain  religious  doctrine  is  substantiated 
by  miracles,  the  highest  reason  for  totally  rejecting  it,  or 
holding  it  as  unproved.  We  are  warranted  in  stating  the 
following  propositions,  as  embodying  the  faith  of  the  scien- 
tific world : 

1 :     There  is  an  Infinite  Intelligence  whom  we  call  God, 
2 :     Man  is  by  nature  a  religious  being, 
3:     Every  religion  has  in  it  a  nucleus  of  truth, 
4:     No  religion   is  exclusively  true,  or  founded  upon  an 
exclusively  divine  Revelation. 

As  for  ourselves  we  see  no  reason  for,  and  no  possibility 
of,  overthrowing  or  changing  this  settled  conviction  of  the 
scientific  world.  Rather  do  we  full}'  agree  with  it,  that  the 
assumption  of  the  miraculous  origin  for  a  religion  cannot 


142  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

help  in  substantiating  the  truth  of  such  faith ;  but  on  the 
other  hand,  we  assert  that  the  fact  that  religion  has  a  nat- 
ural genesis  is  conclusive  proof  that  it  embodies  in  it  an  eter- 
nal truth,  that  its  builder  and  founder  is  God,  the  Principle 
of  all  evolution.     Let  us  examine  into  the  facts : 

On  the  fact  and  stability  of  inherent  tendencies  in  matter, 
depends  all  evolution.  But  Evolution  depending  on  these 
inherent  tendencies,  could  not  have  produced  them.  At  the 
time,  therefore,  of  the  coming  into  being  of  matter,  atoms 
must  have  had  bestowed  on  them  certain  definite  attributes 
■which  for  ever  afterwards  should  characterise  them.  Every 
atom  combines  with  other  atoms  only  in  fixed  and  definite 
proportions  by  weight.  But  that  atoms  show  their  likes  and 
dislikes,  or  manifest  their  characteristics,  there  must  be  the 
conditions  of  chemical  activity.  Without  such  conditions, 
their  characteristics  would  not  manifest  themselves.  In  the 
material  world  we  sec,  therefore,  that  atoms  charged  with 
all  their  special  attributes,  is  a  condition  of  evolution.  So 
in  the  evolution  of  religion  do  we  insist  that  the  scientific 
mind  must  admit,  and  must  postulate : 

1 :     A  spirit  atom, 

2 :     A  definite  attribute, 

3 :     Thought, 

4 :     Di^erent  environments, 

5 :  Unequal  exposure. 
As  material  atoms  must  have  had  bestowed  on  them  their 
characteristic  attributes,  and  as  they  would  fail  to  manifest 
those  attributes  without  the  fulfilment  of  certain  conditions, 
so  must  the  scientific  mind  postulate  for  the  evolution  of 
religion  a  soul-atom,  having  had  bestowed  on  it  all  the  attri- 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Relitjion.    143 

butes  which  have  bce;i,  or  ever  can  be,  characteristic  of  it; 
and  yd  he  must  admit  that  the  manifestations  of  these  attri- 
butes of  the  soul-atora,  must  be  onlj'  in  proportion  to  the 
fulfilment  of  tlie  comlitions  of  sucii  manifestation.  The 
soul  atom,  or  spirit  atom,  iiiny  indeed  be,  as  I  l)elieve,  in  the 
lowest  of  all  vital  forces ;  but  the  conditions  of  the  higher 
manifestations  would  of  course  be  found  onh'  in  higher 
intelligences,  such  as  man.  In  the  soul-atom,  charged  with 
this  divine  tendency,  have  we  the  first  condition  of  religious 
evolution ;  and  in  this  do  we  find  the  highest  proof  of  the 
eternal  truth  in  the  essentials  of  religious  faiths. 

The  fact  that  the  tendency-  of  the  soul- atom  toward  God, 
is  not  manifested  without  the  fulfilment  of  the  conditions  of 
such  manifestation,  and  the  further  fact  that  the  conditions 
of  such,  manifestation  consist  in  part  of  a  certain  amount  of 
intellectual  attainment,  make  reasonable  the  belief  of  Evol- 
utionists that  the  earliest  man  had  little,  if  any,  religious 
belief. 

We  have  now  seen  how  God  reveals  himself  to  humanity : 
He  bestows  on  the  spirit- atom  a  spiritual  potentiality  which 
becoming  active,  the  conditions  being  given,  seeks  union, 
spiritual  union,  with  God.  Thus  every  soul,  when  this 
potential  energy  has  become  active,  pram's,  propitiates, 
adores,  praises,  and  feels  or  gropes  after  immortal  life. 
Herein  is  wisdom  divine,  love  divine;  herein  is  God's 
authoritative,  universal,  continuous,  eternal,  and  harmoni- 
ous revelation  of  himself;  and  herein  is  found  the  highest 
hope  of  immortal  life.  It  is  the  pure,  the  unadulterated 
Wor<l ;  it  is  the  spirit  of  hope  everlasting;  it  is  the  bright 
spark  of  divinity  from  the  majestic  flame  of  Universal  Love. 


144  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

On  this  theory''  only  can  we  explain  why  this,  the  highest 
energy  of  the  human  soul,  can  sometimes  be  found  with 
energies  degrading ;  or  why  man  even  in  the  paleolithic 
age  could  pra}',  and  hope  for  immortal  life.  The  desire  for 
union  with  God,  is  almost  the  first  fire  to  burn  in  the  soul 
of  the  thinking  man,  and  it  is  certainly  the  last  to  die  out. 
In  a  mind  of  low  degree  this  holy  tendency  softens,  cheers, 
purifies ;  while  in  a  mind  of  high  degree,  it  elevates  to  a 
feeling  of  kinship  with  the  gods,  and  gives  the  steadfast 
hope  of  immortal  life.     Such  a  mind  understands  the  Vedas : 

"There  are  two  halves  of  man:    This  half  is  on  earth ; 

that  half  is  in  heaven He  who  knows  this 

union,  becomes  united.  Lead  us  on  by  a  good  path,  O  thou 
God,  who  knowest  all  things ;  keep  us  from  the  crooked 
evil  and  we  will  offer  thee  the  fullest  praise.  Deign,  there- 
fore, to  take  me  out ;  in  this  world  I  am  like  a  frog  in  a  dry 
well.  The  light  which  is  thy  fairest  form,  I  see  it.  I  am 
what  thou  art  ...  .  This  which  is  nearer  to  us  than 
anything,  this  Self,  is  dearer  than  a  son,  dearer  than  wealth, 
dearer  than  all  else  .  .  .  Seeking  for  freedom  I  go  for 
refuge  to  that  God,  who  is  the  light  of  his  own  thoughts,  he 
who  first  creates,  and  delivers  .  .  lie  who  knows 
this,  goes  day  by  day  into  heaven." 

(Sacred  Books  of  the  East,  vols.  I,  XV). 

The  earthly  half  of  man  is  ever  changing  to  adapt  itself 
to  changed  conditions,  ever  seeking  organic  equilibrium  ; 
SD  the  heavenly  half  is  ever  changing,  ever  seeking  spiritual 
equilibrium.  Religion  results  from  a  universal,  inherent, 
tendency  of  the  soul  toward  God,  governed  in  its  develop- 
ment by  the  laws  of  Evolution  ;  and  the  religion  existing  in 


A  PhilosophkcO  InrjHir>/  into  the  Principles  of  lieligion.   145 

any  countrv,  is  tluit  which  is  natural  to  the  inhabitants  of 
that  country,  and  cannot  be  changed  except  by  a  very  slow 
process,  and  one  fraught  with  danger.  In  all  religions  there 
is  the  same  divine  si)ark  or  nucleus;  and  one's  religion 
widens  in  its  grasp,  and  changes  in  its  mode  of  expression, 
as  the  mind  becomes  more  and  more  enlightened.  As  the 
dark  intellect  becomes  radiant  with  intelligence,  as  the  soul 
is  exi)Osed  to  higher  incident  forces  falling  from  the  bosom 
of  the  Infinite  Father,  as  the  light  of  the  sun  upon  our  dark, 
dark  earth;  so  changes  our  religion,  according  to  the  laws 
of  Evolution,  tc  suit  the  requirements  of  the  expanding 
soul.  No  greater  proof  can  be  had  of  the  truth  of  a  relig- 
ion than  that  it  satisfies  the  laws  of  Evolution ;  no  greater 
proof  of  God's  love  and  care  for  us  can  be  had,  than  that  in 
order  to  bring  the  world  nearer  to  Himself,  he  raises  u[)  by 
his  infinite  energy  in  all  things  operating  according  to  the 
laws  of  Evolution,  men  of  different  natures,  wielding  very 
different  powers,  who,  nevertheless,  manifest  to  the  careful 
observer  the  truth  of  the  Greek  sentence : 

''  //oA/wv  iiy();i.<j~io,/  !J.'>l"frj  p.'.'L  — 

One  form,  though  many  names." 

First  the  egg,  then  the  helpless  young  crying  for  succor, 
then  the  tlodgeling  trying  to  lly,  then  the  full-grown  bird 
soaring  aloft  in  the  vaulted  blue,  —  tliis  is  the  history  of  all 
relio"ious  growth.  It  shows  the  expansion  of  the  soul-atom 
from  the  state  of  unconscious  heavenly  tendency  to  tlie  dig- 
nity of  a  soul  flooded  with  divine  light,  of  a  heart  beating 
with  divine  energy.  Evolution  proves  that  the  Man  of  Naz- 
areth must  have  come  in  due  time,  when  the  old  religions 
had  lost  their  virtue  for  the  time  and  place,  the  intellect 
hnving  outgrown  them.     It  proves  that  the  teaching  of  Christ 


146  Essays  on  God  and  Mdu, 

must  be  true,  because  iu  essential  agreement  with  the  teach- 
ings of  all  great  moral  and  religious  reformers,  or  instruct- 
ors. As  the  old  form  of  a  religion,  its  shell,  becomes  too 
narrow,  then  by  the  striving  of  the  intellect  after  higher  knowl- 
edge, and  the  yearnings  of  the  soul  after  God,  there  comes, 
according  to  the  laws  of  Evolution,  that  knowledge  of  God 
which  is  needful  for  the  time  and  place.  Kalure  is  not  at  a 
loss  in  supplying  the  things  wanting,  whether  for  the  soul  or 
the  body.  Tlie  principles  of  Evolution,  when  applied  to  the 
development  of  religions,  discover  to  us  the  fact  that  relig- 
ion, everywhere  present,  everywhere  moving  the  soul  by 
similar  impulses  onward  to  the  same  common  end,  is  a  nat- 
ural result  of  human  development  under  the  laws  of  nature, 
which  is  another  name  for  the  universally  present  and  uni- 
formly operating  Deity;  and,  therefore.  Evolution  proves 
that  religions  in  their  essence  must  be  true. 

A  bubble  in  the  Infinite  Sea,  a  single  pulsation  of  the 
Universal  Heart,  a  meteor  flashing  upon  our  gaze  from  out 
an  infinite  void,  and  dashing  into  the  fathomless  profound, — 
man  might  jH'operly  enough  call  himself  an  Agnostic  ;  yet  he 
gathers  strength  for  a  higher  life,  searclies  after  the  hidden 
Father,  hopes,  prays,  adores; — yea,  his  whole  being  gropes 
after  immortal  life ;  and  in  this  strange  and  restless  life,  he 
is,  indeed,  "  like  a  frog  in  a  dry  well  "  : 

"RERUMQUE  IGNARUS,  IMAGINE  GAUDET." 

oVrt?  yap  c/.^oicra  yVfMtxi/.zi  duTd'^ 
ainnza  yiy'^uxT/.tt  zdv  0t(i'^ — 

"Know  thyself," 
For  he  who  best  knows  himself, 
lie  it  is  who  best  knows  God. 


BOOK  THE   SECOND. 


THE  IMMORTALITY  OF  THE  SOUL. 


(HT) 


"  He  is  a  freeman  whose  body  is  bound,  and  wiiose  mind  is  free. 
He  is  a  slave  wliosebody  is  free,  and  wiiose  mind  is  bound." 

(Epictetus.) 

"  But  wliether  ttiou  believest  it  of  eternal  birth  and  duration,  or 
that  it  dieth  with  the  body,  still  thou  hast  no  cause  to  lament  it. 
The  former  state  of  things  is  unknown;  the  middle  state  is  evident, 
and  their  future  state  is  not  to  be  discovered.  Why  then  shouldst 
thou  trouble  thyself  about  such  things  as  these?"  (Vedas). 


(MS) 


BOOK  THE  SECOND. 


THE  IMMORTALIl^Y  OF  THE  SOUL. 


A:  SOME    REASONS    IX    DISPROOF  OF    THE  IM- 
MORTALITY OF  THE  SOUL. 

INTRODUCTION : 

Aristotle  says  it  takes  all  kinds  of  men  to  make  a  world. 
It  is  a  common  saying  if  the  fools  were  all  dead,  the  wise 
would  lose  their  means  of  living  ;  but  it  seems  no  less  true 
that  if  the  wise  were  dead,  all  the  fools  would  grow  fat. 
But  since  neither  the  wise  nor  the  fools  are  all  dead  nor 
likely  to  be,  it  becomes  us  to  act  accordingly.  If  it  is  true 
that  the  foolish  do  not  recognise  or  will  not  admit  their  fool- 
ishness, it  is  no  less  true  that  across  the  brightest  intellect 
darkening  clouds  do,  and  will  forever,  roll.  The  best  and 
greatest  are  last  to  claim  infallibility.  Even  in  science 
shades  of  opinion  must  prevail ;  much  more  in  religious 
thought  is  there  room  for  divergencies  of  views.  We  can- 
not all  understand  alike;  constitutional  differences  make  it 
impossible.  One  thing,  and  one  thing  onl^-,  may  we  all  have 
in  common, —  a  burning  desire  to  know,  and  be  governed  b}-, 
the  truth.  The  questions  which  trouble  the  thinking  world 
to-day,  are  not  those  over  which  ecclesiastics  in  the  past 
have  been  accustomed  to  wrangle  and  tear  one  another  as 

(110) 


150  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

wolves,  and  through  which  the  world  has  been  shook  to  its 
foundations,  and  the  blood  of  countless  numbers  poured  out. 
Little  do  thinking  men  trouble  themselves  to-day  about  the 
.loctrines  of  election,  atonement,  vicarious  suffering,  per- 
sonality and  nature  of  Christ,  eternal  damnation,  persever- 
ance of  the  saints,  resurrection  of  the  body,  ecclesiastical 
polity,  priestly  vestments,  etc.  ;  to-day  the  question  in  the 
world  of  thought  is,  "shall  I  retain  my  individuality  after 
death?  am  I  immortal?  "  Such  a  question  cannot  be  mis- 
understood ;  it  goes  to  the  root  of  the  matter.  Upon  the 
answer  to  this  question,  does  not  a  little  of  so-called  religious 
activity  depend.  You  asked  me  to  discuss  this  question  ;  I 
consented  to  oblige  you.  It  was  not  a  little  undertaking.  The 
question  is  most  profound  ;  my  responsibility  equallj-  great. 
In  our  discussion  of  this  subject,  the  Bible  will  not  be 
referred  to  as  having  any  special  authority.  For  us  in  such 
a  question  to  refer  to  the  Bible  as  authority,  would  be  like 
to  the  ordering  a  man  to  sail  a  vessel,  when  it  was  not 
known  if  there  was  a  sea  to  sail  on ;  or  to  the  advising  a 
man  to  get  his  seed  read}',  when  it  was  not  known  if  the 
man  possessed  any  la.id  to  sow  on.  What  the  finger  is  to  the 
ring,  what  the  body  is  to  tlie  garment,  what  the  house  is  to 
its  decoration, —  all  this  is  t!ie  immortality  of  the  soul  to 
any  and  eveiy  l)ook  puri)orting  to  be  a  divine  revelation. 
Loving  nothing  except  that  which  is  true,  seeking  the  truth 
at  all  hazards,  conscious  that  only  b}'^  its  possession  can  we 
ever  hope  for  salvation,  what  ever  may  be  our  faith  or 
belief, — I  shall  fearlessly  tell  you  all  I  know  for  and  against 
the  Immortalitv  of  the  Soul. 


A  Philosophical  Inqnin/  into  the  Principles  of  Relifjion.    lol 

a:     FACTS  IN  DISPROOF  OF  THE  SOUL'S    IMMOR- 
TALITY : 

(a):   DEATH: 

The  fact  of  death  none  will  dispute     .     .     The  living  are 
few,  tlie  dead  are  many.     In  almost  every  household  are 
there  memories  of  the  dead.     In  tattered  garments,  home- 
less,  friendless,   hopeless,   with   a  stone   for  a  pillow  and 
frozen  snow  for  a  coverlet,  the  poor  wanderer,  an  outcast 
from  society,  lives  again  his  childhood  days.     Voices  of  old 
fall  upon  his  ears,  friendly  forms  stand  in  his  presence,  eyes 
beaming  with  love  evoke  respondent  joy  ;  but  oli !    how  he 
shudders  when  he   awakes  to  find  that  these  are  but  the 
ghosts  of  the  dead.     In   vain  he  calls,  in  vain  he  grasps. 
These   forms   are    but   phantoms,    phantoms    of  the  dead. 
That  death  is  in  the  world  every  child  of  man  has  conclu- 
sive proof ;    and  death  we  hold  to  be  an  awful  fact  in  dis- 
proof of  the  immortality  of  the  soul.     "  He  thatgoeth  down 
to  the  grave,"  says  Job,  "  shall  come  up  no  more."     "  The 
grave,"  says  Isaiah,  "  cannot  praise  thee,  death  cannot  cele- 
brate thee ;  the}'  that  go  down  into  the  pit,  cannot  hope  for 
thy  truth."     "  In  death,"  snys  the  Psalmist,  ''there  is  no 
remembrance   of  thee ;  in   the   grave  who   shall  give  thee 
thanks;    the  dead  praise  not  the  Lord,  neither  any  that  go 
down  into  silence."     "  The  dead  know  not  anything,"  says 
Ecclesiastes ;    "neither  have  they  any  more  a  reward  ;    he 
that  goeth  to  the  grave,  shall  come  up  no  more ;  a  living 
dog  is  better  than  a  dead  lion  ;  there  is  no  work,  nor  device, 
nor   knowledge,    nor   wisdom,  in   the  grave    whither  thou 
goest."     Even  our  Lord  is  represented  in  the  Gospels  as 


152  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

saying:  "God  is  not  tlie  God  of  the  dead,  but  of  the 
living." 

In  proof  of  a  future  life  for  the  dead,  many  alleged 
occurrences  are  adduced, —  resurrections,  appearances  of 
spirits,  spirit-rappings,  etc. 

( I )  :     RESURRECTION :  — 

"  A)S  flu  /i£>T()C  <Toc,  r/>  3^  ^Y^i  AXxivoo  ys  arroXoyov  spuj^  a?X 
aX/.'./iou  [j.£v  av(5/?of ,  IIpo?,  rou  Ap,us'^C()u,  to  ysvoq  TlaiKpuXou :  o? 
—iiz£  £v  Tcolzixu)  TBXeuTrj(Ta<^  w^aipzOz>Taj>  dsxaratcov  ra»v  vsxpiov  r/orj 
dt£<fOaprx-ywv  oyir^g  pv^  wjr^pzOr^,  xopiGdzi<s  8s  ouads  peXliu'^  dar:- 
TStrOai  divd^xarato;  £7:t  ttj  nupa  xeipsvo^  avel3tw,  ava^cou?  5'  £?.£ye\^ 
a  sxBi  tdo'..  £<frj  d-,  £7:£tdrj  6u  £xl3r/vat  rr^v  (fiu^r/V,  ■!:op£U£ffdai  /i£Ta 
— fV.Awv,  y.ac  a.<pcx'^£tir0at  ff^a?  £f?  T<)~ov  rcva  datrjMvtuv^  £v  (p  t>j?  T£ 
yrj^  Suo  eivu.t  yaniiaza  £yoij.£vu)  aXJ.r^Xovj  xai  z<io  oupavoo  au  £v  tu) 
avoj  a).).a  xazavzixpu.  ocxaffzag  §£  p.£za^u  touzcuv  xaOr^aOat,  uug- 
£7:£'.8tj  dca8cxa<T£cav,  Toy?  p£v  8ixa:uu?  x£}.£U£tv  Ttapzosadai  zy]v  st? 
8£z'.av  Z£  xai  a\>LO  8ta  zou  aupavou,  (Trpj.ia  Tzzpiail'wjza^  zcov  8£8txaff- 
p.Z'^ayj  vj  zo)  -poaOvj^  zow^  8£  oS'.xow^  zr^-j  £i<;  aptazzpay  z£  xai 
xazu)^  £y<)'^Ta^  xai  zoozowi  £v  zoj  o-ktOvj  arj!J.£ia  Travzwv  u)v  ETzpa^av. 
iauzoo  8s  —p(>(j£?.Oo'^zu(T  £i~£iv  ozi  8£()C  aozov  ayy£?.ov  ayOpuj~()t<s 
ys'^sfjOac  zor^  sxst  xai  8'.axsX£Uiii>Z()  of  ax(iU£iv  z£  xai  d^aGBa.'.  -avza 
za.  £v  z(p  z(i~<o  — 

Let  me  not  relate  a  fabulous  story ;  rather  will  I  tell  you 
what  happened  to  a  most  virtuous  man,  Er,  son  of  Arminius, 
of  the  family  of  Pamphilus,  wlio  was  slain  in  war.  Ten 
days  after  his  death,  when  the  bodies  of  the  slain  were  in  a 
state  of  decomposition,  the  body  of  Er  was  found  unaffected 
by  death,  taken  up,  and  carried  home  for  the  purpose  cf 
burial.     On  the  twelfth  day  after  his  death,  when  his  body 


.1  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.    153 

was  lying  upon  the  funeral  pile,  Er  arose  from  the  <leud,  and, 
arising,  told  the  people  what  he  had  seen  in  the  other  world. 
Said  he:  wlienever  a  soul  departs  this  life,  it  proceeds  in 
company  with  many  otliers  until  it  ariivcs  at  a  eeitaiii  di- 
vine place  where  there  exists  two  chasms  in  the  earth,  contig- 
uous to  each  other,  entering  to  the  regions  below  ;  and  just  as 
many  in  the  heavens,  entering  to  the  regions  above.  Be- 
tween these  places,  he  says,  sit  judges  who  pass  sentence 
upon  all.  The  just  are  ordered  to  the  right-hand  whence 
they  ascend  to  the  regions  above,  l)earing  tlie  marks  of  their 
works  on  their  breasts;  tlie  unjust  are  ordered  to  the  left- 
liand,  whence  they  descend  to  the  regions  below,  bearing  the 
marks  of  their  works  on  their  backs.  Er,  having  seen  these 
things,  was  sent  back  as  a  messenger  to  man  of  those  who  or- 
dered him  to  hear  and  observe  everything  which  took  place." 

(Plato:   RepubUc,  X,  614). 

Here  we  have  ua  account  of  a  resurrection  from  the  dead. 
It  is  stated  and  apparently  believed  by  one  incomparably  su- 
perior as  a  witness  to  any  one  of  the  twelve  apostles  of  Christ. 
Why,  I  ask,  do  we  not  believe  this  account?  The  answer  is 
that  however  capable  Plato  was,  the  account  is  so  at  variance 
with  experience,  and  with  what  are  known  as  the  laws  of  na- 
ture, that  as  every  force  manifests  itself  along  the  lines  of 
least  resistance,  so  the  force  of  intellect  in  such  ca^es  as  this, 
unable  to  overcome  the  conviction  of  the  invariability  of  the 
laws  of  nature,  adopts  the  belief  that  Plato  was  deceived, 
as  were  all  those  who  may  have  believed  the  account  of  the 
resurrection  of  Er  from  the  dead. 

The  resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ  has  been  believed  by  the 
Christian  Church,  as  such,  from  the  beginning;  but  there 


loi  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

never  has  been  a  time  in  the  history  of  the  church  when 
voices  have  not  been  heard  protesting  ao;ainst,  and  refusing 
to  beUeve,  this  dogma.  For  proof  of  this  statement  I  will 
refer  the  reader  to  the  following  authorities,  or  to  any  of  the 
various  histories  of  church  doctrine:  (II  Tim.  II,  18;  Acts 
XVII,  32  ;  I  Cor.  XV,  12,  13,  35  ;  Justin  on  the  Resurrec- 
tion, II ;  Tertullian  on  the  Flesh  of  Christ,  XI -XV  ;  Origen 
against  Celsus,  IV,  56,  59,  63;  V,  2,  14,  18,  20,  22;  Meth- 
odius on  the  Resurrection,  part  I,  2,  12).  As  in  all  times 
past  there  have  been  serious  objections  raised  to  belief  in 
the  resurrection  of  the  dead,  and  frequently  to  belief  in  the 
resurrection  even  of  Christ ;  so  now  are  there  found  mul- 
titudes who,  after  earnestly  seeking  for  proof  of  this  dogma, 
conclude  that  no  sufficient  proof  can  be  found.  Among 
those  who  feel  forced  to  reject  this  dogma  as  not  proved, 
are  found  many  of  the  highest  and  purest  intellects.  It 
must  be  admitted  that  the  coming  to  life  of  a  dead  body, 
whether  that  of  Er  or  any  other  person,  is  a  most  stupend- 
ous miracle ;  nor  can  it  be  denied  that  in  order  to  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  truth  of  an  alleged  miracle,  the  most  clear 
and  irrefragable  testimony  is  necessary.  The  question  is : 
have  we  such  testimony  for  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ 
from  the  dead?  what  are  the  documents  wherein  such  testi- 
mony is  alleged  to  be  found?  who  are  the  authors?  and 
what  is  the  character  of  the  witnesses? 

There  can  Ije  no  doubt  that  we  have  some  genuine  writings 
of  St.  Paul,  wherein  the  resurrection  of  Christ  from  the 
dead  is  affirmed ;  and  every  one  knows  that  it  is  mentioned 
in  each  of  the  four  Gospels.  But  all  examination  tends  to 
prove  that  these  Gospels  are  not  different  and  independent 


A  Philosophical  In'juir'i  into  the  Principles  of  R'di'jion.    \')5 

clocuiuents.  Papia>,  who  suffcri'd  murtynloia  about  llie 
year  1G4,  s[)eaks  of  Matlievv  ami  Mark,  I)ut  makes  no  incn- 
tioii  of  Luke  or  John.  This  fact  is  held  by  very  many  con- 
clusive j)roof  that  Luke  and  John  were  not  in  existence  in 
tlie  days  of  Papias.  The  Gospel  of  St.  Luke  is  quite  gener- 
ally admitted  to  l)e  a  critical  work  corai)iled  lont^  subse- 
quently to  the  occurrences  of  the  events  narrated  ;  and  the 
Gospel  of  St.  John  is,  in  all  probability,  a  still  much  later 
work,  one  whose  historical  character  is  not  of  very  great 
value,  and  whose  genuineness  is  not  a  little  suspected. 
There  remain  as  pf)ssibly  original  documents  the  Gospels  of 
Saints  Mathew  and  Mark.  Of  St.  Mark  Papias  expressly 
says  that  he  had  never  personally  known  the  Lord,  nor 
heard  him  s[)eak  ;  but  that  he  wrote  his  Gospel  from  memory 
as  a  disciple  of  St.  Peter.  Of  St  Mathew  the  same  author- 
ity says:  "  Mathew  wrote  the  discourses  of  the  Lord  down 
in  Hebrew,  which  every  one  translated  as  best  he  could." 

Again :  the  Gospels  which  we  possess  to-day  called  Mathew 
and  Mark  are  probably  not  the  originals,  but  the  results  of 
emendations,  translations,  comparisons,  etc.  of  those  orig- 
inals by  different  authors  at  different  dates,  aided  by  oral 
tradition.  This  itself  introduces  a  large  element  of  uncer- 
tainty. In  addition,  it  is  extremely  dillicult,  if  not  wholly 
impossible,  for  any  impartial  mind  to  fully  reconcile  the  evi- 
dence borne  by  either  of  these  two  Gospels  with  that  borne 
by  the  other.  It  must  be  further  observed  that  the  oldest 
and  best  MSS.  of  the  Gospel  of  St.  INIark  close  at  the  end  of 
the  eighth  verse  of  the  last  chapter.  Thus  the  Gospel  of  St. 
Mark  gives  us  no  evidence  whatever  of  any  one  seeing  Christ 
after  he  is  said  to  have  arisen  from  the  doad.     We  would 


156  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

not  be  understood  as  holding  that  the  documentary  evidence 
we  have  of  the  resurrection  of  Christ  from  the  dead,  is  self- 
contradictor}',  or  altogether  insufficient ;  but  it  is  but  fair  to 
sa}',  that  multitudes  of  the  best  and  brightest,  after  painful 
investigation,  have  pronounced  it  and  do  pronounce  it  alto- 
gether unsatisfactory  and  insufficient.  Having  briefly 
spoken  of  the  documents,  we  might  inquire  who  are  the 
witnesses.  It  is  important  that  we  should  know  if  the  wit- 
nesses were  qualified  to  judge  of  the  evidence  of  what  they 
assert  as  facts ;  if  they  were  credulous,  ignorant,  or  super- 
stitious. Referring  to  this,  Darwin  says:  "The  men  at 
that  time  were  ignorant  and  credulous  to  a  degree  almost 
incomprehensible  to  us.  The  Gospels  cannot  be  proved  to 
have  been  written  simultaneously  with  the  events ;  and  thej* 
differ  in  many  important  details,  far  too  important  to  be 
admitted  as  the  usual  inaccuracies  of  eye-witnesses." 

(Life  &  Let.,  I,  278). 
Again :  scarcely  anything  is  known  of  the  writers.  Luke, 
it  is  said  was  a  physician ;  of  St.  Mark  we  know  next  to 
nothing.  Spinoza,  Bolingbi'oke,  Woolston,  Hume,  Hegel^ 
Carneri,  Lang,  Vischer,  Hartman,  Eichorn,  Huxley,  Darwin, 
Renan,  Paulus,  Keim,  Mill,  Schleiermacher,  Baur,  Fuer- 
bach,  Ruge  and  Schmidt,  do  not  find  the  testimony,  as  given 
in  the  New  Testament,  sufficient  to  establish,  beyond  what 
may  be  called  reasonable  doubt,  our  belief  in  the  resurrec- 
tion of  Christ  from  the  dead.  On  the  side  of  these  learned 
authorities  there  are  found  multitudes  of  men  from  all  ranks 
and  professions ;  and  it  is  known  to  all  that  the  learned 
Strauss  calls  the  resurrection  of  Christ  from  the  dead,  the 
"humbug   of     history."     While,    therefore,     we   are   not 


A  Philosophical  IiKjnir;/  into  (he  }'riiicii)le.s  of  Reliijion.    157 

obliged  to  admit  that  the  resurrection  of  Christ  has  l)een 
disproved ;  we  are  obliged  to  admit  that  there  must  be  some 
grounds,  at  least,  for  doubting  it,  or  so  many  men  good  and 
great  woiild  not  be  found,  from  the  earliest  da^s  of  Chris- 
tianity to  the  present  time,  rejecting  this  dogma,  thereljy  in- 
curring the  wrath  of  the  church,  and  frequently  the  evils  of 
social  ostracism. 

With  reference  to  the  testimony  of  St.  Paul,  it  is  held  by 
many  most  competent  authorities  that  the  vision  he  speaks 
of  was  entirely  sul)jective.  Such  an  explanation  of  St. 
Paul's  account,  would  be  consistent  with  the  laws  of  nature 
and  with  human  experience.  As  to  the  assertion  of  St. 
Paul  that  over  five-hundred  saw  Christ  at  once  after  he  had 
arisen  from  the  dead,  it  is  enough  to  say  that  such  an  asser- 
tion is  like  offering  gratuitously  something  of  great  value 
by  the  ton,  when  it  cannot  be  bought  for  price  by  the 
ounce.  It  is  second-hand  and  therefore  very  uncertain 
evidence  for  the  establishment  of  any  alleged  fact  vrhatever ; 
and  when  the  alleged  fact  is  one  which  subverts  a  general 
law,  the  value  of  such  evidence  is  not  very  far  from  zero. 
I  would  not  say  with  Hume  that  it  is  impossible  to  i>rove 
a  miracle  ;  but  not  a  little  of  his  argument  against  the  pos- 
sibility of  miracles,  is  certainly  sound.  "  The  more,"  says 
Darwin,  "  we  know  of  the  fixed  laws  of  nature,  the  more 
incredible  do  miracles  become."  A  miracle  is  something 
which  to  say  the  least  is  contrary  to  all  human  cxi)erience, 
and  to  what  are  known  as  the  general  laws  of  nature. 
Therefore  a  miracle  is  highly  improbable.  On  the  other 
hand,  for  a  person  to  be  mistaken,  to  imagine  as  existent 
what  has  no  existence,  to  give  objective  realities  to  what 


158  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

-exist  only  in  the  mind, —  such  tilings  are  occurring  every 
day,  and  are  a  part  of  every  human  experience.  If  a  man 
were  obliged  to  choose  between  two  alternatives,  the  accept- 
ing as  truth  an  alleged  miracle,  or  believing  the  witnesses  to 
the  alleged  miracle  were  deceived,  the  only  reasonable 
choice  in  general  would  be  the  acceptation  of  the  latter  alter- 
native. To  act  differently  would  be  highly  unreasonable. 
For  the  acceptation  as  truth  of  an  alleged  miracle,  as  before 
stated,  the  most  clear  and  irrefragable  testimony  is  neces- 
sary ;  and  it  is  thought  by  multitudes  most  competent  to 
judge,  that  such  testimony  is  not  to  be  found  for  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ  from  the  dead, 
Rudolf  Seydel,  professor  of  theology,  Leipsic,  Germany, 
has  just  published  a  pamphlet  in  which  he  wholly  denies  the 
authenticity  of  the  Gospels,  holding  that  they  are  but 
emended  writings  based  upon  a  "  poetical  gospel  which  had 
been  modeled  upon  the  frame-work  of  the  Buddha  legend, 
and  had  been  written  under  the  influence  of  Buddhist  tra- 
ditions and  of  many  Buddhist  themes."  Here  we  have  a 
man  who,  while  aflSrming  the  truth  of  Christian  ethics,  and 
filling  an  eminent  position  in  the  Christian  Church,  at  the 
same  time  not  only  denies  the  authentic  character  of  the 
story  of  the  Resurrection,  l)ut  affirms  that  the  Gospels  as 
a  whole  arc  based  upon  myths. 

I  do  not  think  it  a  sign  of  scientific  knowledge,  for  it  is  not 
within  the  power  of  science,  to  deny  the  possibility  of  mira- 
cles. On  the  other  hand,  it  is  a  sign  of  scientific  knowl- 
edge, and  it  is  a  peculiar  mark  of  science,  to  refuse  assent 
to  whatever  is  in  violation  of  any  of  the  fundamentals  of 
scientific  research,  unless  compelled  by  evidence  so  strong 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  lieWjion.    lo'J 

that  its  denial  would  l)e  luore  unreasonable  than  the  denial, 
for  instance,  of  the  persistence  of  force.  Science  speaks 
decisively  only  of  the  things  within  the  realm  of  experience  ; 
it  does  not  speak  of  what,  under  laws  unknown  to  us,  may 
yet  come  to  pass.  Whether  a  miracle  will  ever  happen  is 
outside  of  all  human  experience  and,  therefore,  not  a  ques- 
tion of  science;  whether  a  miracle  has  happened,  is  within 
the  realm  of  experience,  and  therefore,  a  proper  question 
of  science.  In  answer  to  the  question  whether  or  not  a 
miracle  has  ever  happened,  the  scientiQc  world  undoubtedly 
replies  that  no  evidence  in  support  of  a  miracle  has  ever 
been  adduced  which  is  not  with  more  reason  rejected  than 
accepted.  In  other  words,  the  scientific  mind  can  explain 
the  alleged  miracles  on  natural  grounds  with  much  less  dif- 
ficulty than  it  can  believe  in  the  mutability  of  God,  or, 
which  is  the  same,  the  variability  of  the  laws  of  n'titure. 
Nor  does  the  value  of  the  Christian  Church  depend  on  the 
resurrection  of  Christ  from  the  dead,  or  on  the  reality  of 
any  other  miracle.  Should  you  say  that  St.  Paul  asserts 
the  contrary,  I  would  ask  how  do  3'ou  know  St.  Paul 
asserted  what  he  is  said  to  have  asserted?  and,  if  in  truth 
he  did  assert  what  he  is  said  to  have  asserted,  how  do  yoa 
know  he  was  not  mistaken? 

Whether  or  not  one  accepts  the  bodily  resurrection  of 
Christ  from  the  dead,  he  will  not  deny  that  in  Christ  there 
was  seen  the  fruit  of  countless  3'ears  of  sowing  and  cultivat- 
ing, the  realisation  of  human  hopes,  the  emboiliment  of 
human  visions.  As  a  well  of  water  in  a  dry  land,  so  was 
he  refreshing  to  his  age,  and  so  shall  he  be  to  every  age. 
Standing  forth  a  light  in  mental  darkness,  a  mind  burning 


160  Essrnjs  on   God  and  Man, 

with  love  for  purity  and  truth,  a  soul  boating  in  unison  with 
God, —  he  was  indeed  a  living  soul  in  a  dead  world ;  among 
those  who  had  long  since  been  buried,  a  resurrection  from 
the  dead  ;  and  in  this  sense  may  it  be  truly  said  we  all 
believe  in  a  resurrected  life.  Thus  while  for  myself  I  have 
never  denied,  nor  do  I  now  deny,  the  bodily  resurrection  of 
Christ ;  I  am  yet  glad  to  say  that  my  faith  in  the  Christian 
religion  does  not  depend  on  imaginary  quantities,  or  sup- 
posable  factors ;  I  have  faith  in  it  because  it  is  natural,  true 
to  nature,  true  to  reason,  true  to  man, —  the  highest 
expression  of  the  soul's  development  in  all  those  things  to 
which  religion  relates. 

But  with  reference  to  miracles,  science  says:  "We  have 
given  a  few  exceptional  instances  attested  by  evidence  not 
of  a  character  to  warrant  belief  in  any  facts  in  the  smallest 
degrtSb  improbable  .  .  The  miracles  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment have  no  claim  whatever  to  the  character  of  historical 
facts  and  are  wholly  invalid  as  evidence.  The  evidence  for 
miracles  when  dispassionately  examined  is  altogether  insuffi- 
cient to  establish  even  an  ordinary  event." 

If,  as  we  find,  the  proof  for  the  resurrection  of  Christ 
from  the  deail  is  thus  declared  insufficient  by  so  many  com- 
petent authorities  to  establish  it  beyond  doubt,  we  must  be 
pardoned  for  not  attempting  to  prove  the  immortality  of  the 
soul  by  referring  to  the  many  other  alleged  resurrections 
mentioned  by  Plato,  Pliny,  Papias,  St.  Augustine,  and 
others. 

We  now  pass  on  to  the  examination  of  the  next  thing 
adduced  in  proof  of  the  immortality  of  the  soul,  — 
ghosts. 


A  P/iilosopJti'cal  Iiiijnirij  into  tfic  Principles  of  Religion.    101 

(IT):     THE  API'KARAXCE  OF  GHOSTS:— 

That  the  spirits  of  the  dead  often  return  to  visit  tlieir 
friends,  has  been  almost  a  universal  belief.  Frequently 
ver}' valuable  advice  is  alleged  thus  to  be  received,  grave 
dangers  escaped,  and  threatened  evils  averted.  It  was  by 
a  ghostly  visitor  that  p]dwin,  king  of  Northumbria,  was 
assured,  after  having  wandered  al)out  for  nearly  thirty 
years,  of  a  change  in  his  career.  The  spirit  informed  him 
that  Ethelric  would  fail  in  his  purpose,  and  that  he  would 
live  to  be  the  greatest  of  all  the  Saxon  kings.  Bede.  the 
ecclesiastical  historian,  assures  us  of  the  reality  of  this 
alleged  vision. 

We  can  not  mention  any  people  whose  literature  does 
not  contain  numberless  accounts  of  ghostly  visitations; 
nor  do  we  know  of  any  age  when  belief  in  the  appearance 
of  departed  spirits  has  not  more  or  less  prevailed.  Among 
the  lower  classes  such  belief  has  been  almost  universal; 
and  even  among  the  higher  and  more  educated  classes, 
there  are  found  some  who  stand  read}'  to  testify  to  having 
witnessed  the  appearance  of  spirits  from  the  dead. 

It  would  seem,  however,  that  with  the  advance  of  scien- 
tific knowledge  the  frequency  of  the  occurrence  of  these 
alleged  appearances  grows  less  and  less.  Nevertheless, 
such  declarations,  made  by  so  many  persons  of  undoubted 
veracity  and  intelligence,  would  seem  to  be  of  some  weight 
in  determining  the  question  of  the  soul's  immortality;  but 
the  position  of  the  philosophic  world  is  that  the  return 
from  the  dead  of  a  departed  spirit  has  never,  in  any  case, 
been  satisfactorily  and  indisputably  established. 

n 


102  Essays  on   God  and  Man., 

(Ill):  SPIRIT-REVELATIONS:— 

Among  all  the  various  systems  of  religious  belief,  per- 
haps none  has  a  more  earnest  and  devoted  body  of 
followers  than  has  Spiritualism,  among  whom  there  are 
found  some  of  the  most  intelligent  and  refined.  Nor 
does  the  philosopher  having  faith  in  the  continuance 
of  the  self  after  death,  see  in  their  basic  teachings  any- 
thing contrary  to  reason  or  science;  indeed,  much  of 
what  they  claim  to  be  truth  would  seem  to  be  related  to 
the  Christian  faith  as  a  corollary  to  its  proposition.  We 
are  fully  convinced  that  of  all  the  so-called  elements, 
known  and  unknown,  there  is  but  one  eternal  and 
universal  substance;  and  that  even  the  soul  itself,  if  it 
exists  apart  from  the  body,  is  of  the  same  substantial 
essence.  Dependent  on  thermometrical,  electrical,  and 
various  other  conditions,  this  universal  essence  manifests 
itself  in  ever}-  grade  of  being  from  the  coarsest  material 
to  the  highest  spiritual;  and  each  being,  as  a  cell  in  the 
human  organism,  exists  as  a  part  of  the  universal  body 
to  which  it  belongs.  Through  this  infinite  body  waves 
of  energy  are  ever  rolling,  some  affecting  this  part,  some 
that,  according  to  the  nature  of  their  origin.  As 
waves  of  material  energy  pass  through  liquid,  solid, 
gas,  atmosphere,  ether,  living  organisms,  so  waves  of 
spiritual  energy  may  pass  through  the  ether,  the 
universal  body  in  which  every  being  exists,  affecting 
any  spiritual  body  in  sympathy  with  them.  Thus  do 
telepathy,  clairvoyance,  and  many  other  occult  phe- 
nomena find  a  rational  explanation;  nor  would  it  be  at 
all  absurd  to  believe  that  under  certain  conditions  the 
gulf  between  the  living  and  the  dead  can  be  removed; 
but  granting  this,  we  are  nevertheless  vniable  to  say  that 
the  philosopher  is  satisfied  with  the  evidence  adduced  by 
Spiritualists,  or  that  he  has  found  in  Spiritualism  any 
conclusive  proof  of  the  soul's  immortality.  Says  Mill  : 
"There  is  therefore  no  assurance  whatever  of  a  life  after 
death;  but  to  anyone  who  feels  it  conducive  either  to  his 
usefulness  or  to  his  satisfaction  to  hope  for  a  future  state  as 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  (he  Principles  of  Religion.    1G3 

a  possibility,  there  is  no    hindrance  to   liis  indulging  that 
hope."  (Essays  on  Religion). 

(b):  THE  NATURE  OF  MAN  ESSENTIALLY  THE 
SAME  AS  THAT  OF  TIH:  ANIMAL-WORLD 
IN  GENERAL: 

I :  PHYSIOLOGICAL :  — 

Man  is  a  member  of  the  sub-genus  vertebrata,  a  division 
of  animals  having  a  more  or  less  developed  spinal  column ; 
and  of  the  class  mammalia,  animals  distinguished  by  the 
fact  that  they  suckle  their  young  ;  and  of  the  sub-class  mon- 
odelphia,  animals  distinguislied  by  the  fact  that  the  females 
of  this  sub-class  have  but  one  uterus.  This  sub-class,  under 
which  man  falls,  is  divided  by  Huxley  into  eleven  orders  ac- 
cording to  the  features  of  the  placenta: 

(1):  The  Primates, 

(2):  The  Insectivora, 

(3):  The  Cheiroptera, 

(4) :  The  Rodentia, 

(5):  The  Carnivora, 

(6):  The  Proboscidai, 

(7):  The  Hyracoidci3, 

(8):  The  Ungulata, 

(9) :  The  Cetacea, 

(10):  TheSirenia, 

(11):  The  Edetata. 

The  Primates,  under  which  man  falls,  are  divided  by  the 
same  eminent  authority  into  three  sub-orders: 

(1):  The  Anthropidiu, 

(2):   The  Simi:id;e, 

(3):Tho  Lcnuiri^la'. 


164  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

Here  then  whether  man  would  or  not,  we  find  him  classified 
by  one  of  the  highest  living  authorities  as  a  member  of  the 
animal  world,  having  nothing  in  peculiar  which  should  ex- 
clude him  from  this  classification.  More  than  this  the  same 
eminent  authority  informs  us  that ' '  the  structural  differ- 
ences Ijetween  man  and  the  Primates  which  approach  nearest 
to  him,  are  not  greater  than  those  which  exist  between  the 
latter  and  the  other  members  of  the  order  of  Primates." 
Translated  into  every-day  English,  this  means  that  the  phys- 
iobgical  bridge  which  separates  man  from  the  highest  mon- 
kies,  is  no  greater  than  that  which  separates  monkies  of  the 
highest  order  from  monkies  of  the  lowest  order.  It  was 
once  claimed  that  man  had  a  peculiar  lumbar  curve,  a  curve 
in  his  back  unlike  that  of  any  inferior  animal.  Goodsir  and 
Sir  William  Turner  were  positive  of  this.  Huxley  was 
among  the  first  to  deny  it.  He  was  followed  by  Broca  and 
Topinard.  Now  it  is  generally  denied.  Prof.  Cunningham 
of  Dublin,  in  a  remarkable  paper  printed  by  the  Royal  Irish 
Academy  in  188G,  has  conclusively  shown  that  not  only  the 
highest  simiad?e,  but  also  the  majorit}^  of  the  lower,  possess 
this  curve ;  and  that  under  certain  conditions,  even  quad- 
rupeds show  traces  of  it.  He  proves  that  this  graceful 
curve  is  a  result  of  adaptation.  In  the  Australian,  the  Negro, 
and  the  Andaman  Islander,  this  curve  is  not  so  well  marked 
as  in  the  European.  In  the  European  the  bodies  of  the  ver- 
tebra are  more  or  less  moulded  in  adaptation  to  the  curve: 
but  in  the  lower  races  there  is  to  be  found  no  traces  of  this. 
It  is  now  known  that  there  is  scarcely  any  difference  between 
the  human  lumbar  curve  and  that  of  the  chimpanzee.  Even 
Max  Mueller,  who  is  very  much  worried  less  it  be  conclu- 


A  Philosophical  Liqnir;/  into  the  Principles  of  Relif/ion.   105 

sively  proved  that  his  one-millionth  ancestor  was  a  third- 
rate  monkey,  saj's :  "  I  have  always  treated  man  not  only  as  a 
descendant  of  an  animal,  but  as  to  all  intents  and  purposes  an 
animal."  (Sci.  of  Th.  573).  A  person  would  think  that 
the  last  clause  of  this  admission  was  very  unnecessary  ;  for 
it  is  hard  to  see  wh}'  a  descendant  of  an  araimal,  could  be 
anything  other  than  an  animal. 

We  know  that  all  this  varied  tree  of  animal  life  dies, 
and  that  man  is  a  limb  of  this  great  tree.  No  one 
reasonably  believes  that  any  limb  of  this  tree  lives 
after  death,  with  the  possible  exception  of  the  limb 
representing  man.  The  philosopher  asks  "  why  except 
man  ?  on  what  grounds  do  you  reasonably  expect  a  life  be- 
yond tlie  grave  for  man,  while  you  assign  the  rest  of  his 
kind  to  oblivion?  Why  give  only  man  immortality,  when 
from  those  of  the  order  of  Primates  nearest  to  him,  he  does 
not  differ  any  more  than  the  latter  from  the  other  memliers 
of  the  order  of  Primates?  To  tliis  question  of  the  philoso- 
pher no  satisfactot}-  and  conclusive  answer  can  be  given. 
On  the  grounds  of  physiology  our  reason  for  the  immortal- 
ity of  the  soul,  is  any  thing  but  satisfactory. 

II:   PSYCHOLOGICAL: 

(I):  REASON; 

(II):   LANGUAGE:  — 

To  su[)erficial  observers  it  appears  that  man  is  the  onlj' 
animal  which  possesses  reason.  Not  onh'^  do  the  ignorant 
tliink  thus,  but  many  of  the  most  eminent  philosophers  have 
thought  likewise.     Thus  Aristotle  makes  reason  the  distinc- 


1G6  Essays  on  God  and  3ffin, 

tive  mark  of  man:  ^^Ops^t'S  itv^  yaf}  xat  ev  rot^  aV.ot^  ^ojot^^ 
eyy.'^srat,  -poaijjsffi'i  S'  ou :  yj  yap  -poatpE(n<s  p-tra  hiyoo, 
Xoyoi}  S'  £v  ouds'^i  Tio'^  o.l).or^  ^<ywv  zaziv.  .  .  .  ^ouktuzuov 
ds  povov  avOpiuTto*}  eari  tuj'^  !^(x)ujv.  ,  .  .  A^aptpyr^rrxz/jOut 
de  ouSev  aXXo  duyarat  -Xr^v  avdpu)-(t<;.  Desire  is  common  to  all 
animals ;  fore-thought  is  not.  Reason  is  necessary  to  fore- 
thought, and  reason  belongs  exclusively  to  man.  Of  all 
animals  man  only  is  deliberative ;  man  only  is  able  to  recall 
the  past."  (Eth.  Meg.  I,  17,  1  ;  Peri  Ta  Zoia  I,  1,  34). 

Should  a  man  say  to  me  to-day  that  no  animal  except  man 
has  reason,  I  would  ask  him  how  he  knew.  I  might  repeat 
the  words  of  Mill  to  Whewell :  "  I  do  not  know  what  passes 
in  a  mole's  mind."  Philosophers  do  not  claim  to-day  for 
man  the  exclusive  possession  of  reason.  "I  have  often," 
says  Max  Mueller,  "  dwelt  on  this  kind  of  reasoning  as  com- 
mon to  man  and  brute."  (Sci.  of  Th.  32).  Mill  holds 
that  the  higher  animals  make  their  inductions  as  the  uncul- 
tivated masses  make  nearly  all  theirs.  Says  Schopenhauer : 
"  Those  who  deny  understanding  to  the  higher  animals,  can 
have  very  little  themselves."  This  philosopher  holds  that 
the  higher  animals  have  both  memory  and  imagination. 
Tito  Vignoli  insists  that  the  processes  of  human  and 
animal  reasoning,  are  essentially  the  same.  Says  Spen- 
cer: "Every  one  is  bound  to  admit  that  as  the  ration- 
ality of  the  infant  is  no  higher  than  that  of  the  dog,  if 
so  high  ;  and  as  from  the  rationality  of  the  infant  to  that  of 
a  man  the  progress  is  through  gradations  which  are  infin- 
itesimal; there  is  also  a  series  of  infinitesimal  gradations 
through  which  brute  rationality  may  })ass  into  human  ration- 
ality."    (Psy.  I,  461).     William  Ilosea  Ballon,  writing  for 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   1G7 

the  North  American  Review,  says:   "Thomas  Brian  Gunn- 
ing, wliose  scientific  discoveries  have  given  him,  I  Ijelicve, 
alone  among  Americans  a  fellovvship  in  the  Royal  Society  of 
Surijeons   of   Great  Britain,  once  owned  one  of  the  most 
learned  cats  known.     '  Black  '  was  the  name  of  the  cat.     He 
always  sat  at  the  table  with  the  famil}',  in  his  own  chair, 
with  his  own  crockery,   and  with   his  fore-paws  delicately 
placed  beside  his  plate.     He  used  his  paws  and  his  mouth 
much  more  deft!}'  and  politely  than  the  masses  of  humanity. 
'  Black '  delivered  the  mail  at  the  box  on  the  corner  lamp- 
post, and  never  forgot  a  face  nor  a  friend,  though  years  in- 
tervened between  the  meetings.     The  most  remarkable  of 
his  acts  occurred  when  a   swelling  appeared  on  his  body 
causing  him  great  pain.     '  Black  '    was  always  present  at 
surgical  o})erations,  and  in  this  instance  demonstrated  that 
he  liad  not  been  an  unobservant  student.     His  master  ex- 
amined the  sore  and  requested  the  boy  to  call  in  the  younger 
.surgeon   to   lance   the    sore.     '  Black '    heard   the    words, 
jumped  upon  the  bed,  and  lanced  the  sore  with  his  teeth. 
When  the  place  healed  there  was  no  scar,  and  the  surgeons 
agreed  that  they  could  not  perform  the  operation  and  cure 
without  leaving  one.     It  is  evident  that  the  animal  which 
enjoys  the  most  constant  and  intimate  association  with  edu- 
cated people  is  the  most  learned.    Thus  the  pet  dogs  and  cats, 
constantly  with  their  owners,  acquire  the  most  intelligence. 
Many   of  these   are  taught  to   be  epicures,   dining  in  the 
choicest  way,  to  show  disdain  for  vulgar  people,  to  have  a 
fomlncss  for  jewelry,  to  cast  off  indecent  street  manners  of 
their  kind,  and  in  ever}'  way  to  show  a  sense  of  refinement. 
One  must  be  ignorant,  uuobserving,  and  obstinate  who  will 


168  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

use  the  term  instinct  as  applied  to  all  acts  of  the  lower  ani- 
mals, and  will  not  admit  that  some  of  them  have  a  higher 
mentality  than  primeval  man  and  the  modern  scum  of  man- 
kind. ...  A  decent,  well-bred  lower  animal  is  a  far 
better  citizen  than  an  indecent,  ill-mannered  person."  The 
late  Dr.  Carpenter  of  England  said  he  knew  a  dog  which  was 
a  good  domino-player ;  and  that  he  was  full}^  satisfied  the.an- 
imal's  skill  was  genuine.  Mr.  Joseph  John  Murphy  says 
that  animals  perceive  as  vividly  as  we  do,  but  have  only  a 
rudimentary  power  of  conce])tion  and  thought. 

(Vid.  Nature,  June,  1887). 
Scientists  to-day  will  not  grant  that  to  man  exclusively 
belongs  the  power  of  reason.  In  this  opinion  I  myself  con- 
cur. I  believe  that  reason  extends  throughout  the  whole 
animal  world,  and  that  the  difference  between  the  reason  of  an 
amoeba  and  that  of  a  Newton  is  one  of  degree  only.  There- 
fore, it  cannot  be  said  that  man  has  a  passport  to  a  future 
state  because  of  his  possession  of  reason :  he  possesses 
this  in  common  with  all  other  animals.  But  if  it  be  the 
degree  of  reason,  not  the  exclusive  possession  of  it, 
upon  which  man  founds  his  hopes  for  immortal  life,  we 
grant  that  the  possession  by  man  of  the  most  highly 
developed  reason,  does  make  immortal  life  possible ;  but 
we  are  still  obliged  to  confess  ourselves  "  agnostics." 
We  cannot  say  that  the  possession  of  high  reasoning  power, 
insures  immortal  life.  It  does  make  it  possible ;  it  does  not 
make  it  certain.  So  then,  as  far  as  reason  qualifies  for  im- 
mortality, since  the  animal  world  possesses  this  in  common, 
and  yet  dies  to  live  no  more  ;  we  cannot  be  certain  because  of 
his  possession  of  reason,  that  after  once  having  entered  the 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   1C9 

grave,  man  shall  ever  again  breakthrough  tlie  barriers  of  tlie 
tomb.  Even  if  we  hold  that  reason  cannot  be  a  product  of 
molecular  activity,  and,  therefore,  nuist  continue  after  death  ; 
it  still  follows  that  the  possession  of  the  highest  reason  does 
not  guarantee  us  immortality.  We  may  lose  our  identit}- 
through  absorption,  as  it  were,  by  the  Infinite  Reason.  In 
the  words  of  the  Vedas:  "  When  a  man  dei)artsfrom  hence, 
his  speech  is  merged  in  his  mind,  his  mind  in  his  breath, 
his  breath  in  heat,  his  heat  in  the  Highest  Being."  Our 
possession  of  the  highest  reason,  therefore,  does  not  to  a 
certainty  disprove  the  words  of  Ecclesiastes :  "  He  that 
goeth  to  the  grave,  shall  come  up  no  more." 

LANGUAGE:— 

We  have  seen  that  the  universal  opinion  that  man  is  in 
exclusive  possession  of  reason  has  been  once  for  all  over- 
thrown to  rise  no  more.  Can  it  be  said  that  man  is  in 
exclusive  possession  of  language?  We  answer  that  there  are 
high  authorities  who  hold  this  opinion,  but  we  are  certain 
that  they  cannot  consistently  do  so  ;  and  that  as  all  those 
who  have  defined  man  as  the  only  reasoning  animal  have 
been  forced  to  give  up  their  opinion,  so  in  like  manner  will 
those  be  forced  to  acknowledge  their  defeat  who  teach  that 
man  is  the  onl}'  animal  which  uses  language.  Language  is 
the  natural  outcome  of  reason  ;  and  from  the  first  use  of 
such  a  sign  of  the  reason  within,  language  and  thought  have 
ever  aided  each  oilier  in  tiieir  development.  Any  sound 
caused  by  an  animal  as  expressive  of  its  wants,  feelings,  or 
desires,  should  be  called  language ;  and  it  will  be  so  called 
by  every  consistent  reasoner.     If  we  say  we  do  not  under- 


170  Essays  on  God  cmd  Man, 

stand  an  animal,  we  do  not  speak  philosophically ;  the  truth 
is,  we  do  to  some  extent  interpret  the  cries  and  sounds 
animals  make  in  our  presence.  If  we  say  we  have  no  means 
of  clearly  understanding  them,  those  animals  may  retort  and 
say  they  have  no  means  of  clearly  understanding  us.  As 
far  as  I  know  many  of  those  animals  may  pity  our  helpless- 
ness in  that  we  cannot  converse  with  them.  If  you  say  that 
you  do  not  believe  this,  I  reply  you  are  welcome  to  your 
belief,  and  saj'  with  Max  Mueller:  "  We  can  imagine  any- 
thing we  like  about  what  passes  in  the  mind  of  the  animal, — 
we  can  know  absolutely  nothing."  (S.  of  Th.  9). 

We  cannot  doubt  that  the  lower  animals  have  unmistaka- 
ble, elementary  signs,  or  means,  of  communicating  their 
feelings  or  desires  to  one  another;  and  as  human  language 
is  but  an  elal)oration  of  such  simple  signs  or  means,  it 
would  properly  follow  that  man  is  not  in  exclusive  posses- 
sion of  language.  That  language  is  not  an  exclusive  posses- 
sion of  man,  I  m^^self  have  no  doubt.  There  was  a  time 
when  language  was  looked  upon  as  something  very  mysteri- 
ous, as  not  having  a  natural  origin,  as  having  been  a  crea- 
tion, or  a  result  of  miraculous  intervention.  Ignorant  the- 
ologians believe  and  teach  this  to-day.  Such  a  belief  is  not 
accepted  by  any  scientific  scholar.  To  speak  on  this  sub- 
ject no  one  has  a  higher  right  than  Lazar  Geiger  who  says: 
"  Reason  does  not  date  from  all  eternity',  but  like  every- 
thing else  on  earth  it  has  an  origin.  Although  man  is 
alwa3's  rational,  he  cannot  always  have  been  so.  Reason 
does  not  spring  into  existence  finished  in  all  its  perfection,  as 
it  were  by  a  kind  of  a  catastrophe,  but  it  had  its  own  devel- 
opment."    Says  Max  Mueller:   "No  one  can  understand 


A  Philosophical  Inqninj  into  the  Principle)^  of  Religion.   171 

human  nature,  no  one  can  form  a  true  conception  of  the  ori- 
gin of  language,  who  does  not  clearl}'  see,  that  for  a  time 
every  human  ])eing  and,  therefore,  the  ancestors  of  the 
human  race  themselves  were  without  language,  without  rea- 
son. Language  which  formerly  seemed  so  wonderful  a 
thing  as  to  require  a  superhuman  framer,  is  now  seen  to  be 
vet}'  intelligible  and  a  purely  human  piece  of  workmanship. 
Language  seemed  a  very  mysterious  thing,  the  most  won- 
derful gift  bestowed  on  man  by  a  divine  power ;  but  now, 
how  different!  So  far  from  being  mysterious  and  wonder- 
ful, language  has  become  perfectly  simple  and  intelligible. 
It  is  in  fact  no  more  than  addition  and  subtraction.  How 
a  student  of  the  science  of  language  can  be  anything  but  an 
evolutionist,  is  to  me  utterly  unintelligible."  Prof.  Noire, 
points  out  that  "  wherever  our  senses  are  excited  and  our 
muscles  hard  at  work,  we  feel  a  kind  of  relief  in  uttering 
sounds ;  that  these  sounds  are  almost  involuntary  vibra- 
tions of  the  voice,  corresponding  to  the  more  or  less  regu- 
lar movements  of  our  whole  bodily  frame."  B3'  the 
repeated  use  of  these  natural  sounds  or  grunts  expressive  of 
the  consciousness,  the}^  finally  became  understood.  This 
was  the  natural  beginning  of  language  according  to  Prof. 
Noire,  and  in  his  opinion  Max  Mueller  concurs. 

(Vid.  Sci.  of  Thought). 
Speaking  further  on  this  subject  Max  Mueller  says: 
""We  cannot  doubt  that  language  had  an  historical  begin- 
ning, and  represents  the  work  of  man  carried  on  through 
many  thousands  of  years,  and  cannot  avoid  the  conclusion 
that,  before  those  many  thousands  of  years,  there  was  a 
time  when  the  first  f^tone  of  the  great  tcm[)le  of  language 


172  Essays  on  God  and  J/a?«, 

was  laid,  and  that  before  that  time  man  was  without  lan- 
guage and  therefore  without  reason."    (Sci.  of  Th.,  83). 

Physiology  has  something  to  say  on 
this  subject:  In  the  year  1880  there  was  discovered  in  a 
cave  at  La  Naulette,  in  Belgium,  a  skull  from  which  Prof. 
Mortillet,  on  examination,  found  the  mental  tubercle  absent. 
In  place  of  it  there  was  found  a  hollow  as  with  raonkies. 
From  this  he  argues  that  the  Neanderthal  man  was  speech- 
less. With  this  discovery  of  physiology  all  philological  con- 
clusions agree.  Says  the  learned  Spencer:  "It  is  now  uni- 
versally admitted  by  philologists  that  languages  instead  of 
being  artificially  or  supernaturally  formed,  have  been 
developed."  (Biol.  347).  If  there  ever  was  a  truth 
uttered,  Prof.  Schunk  uttered  one  when,  as  President  of 
the  Chemical  Section,  he  said  in  his  address  before  the  Brit- 
ish Association,  Aug.,  1887,  "all  differences  within  the 
sphere  of  our  experience  are  quantitative."  So  in  the 
power  of  expressing  the  acts  of  consciousness,  we  do  not 
differ  from  the  lower  animals  in  having  a  power  different  in 
qualit}',  but  in  quantity  only.  Says  Darwin  :  "  Grant  a  sim- 
ple archetypal  creature,  like  the  Mud-fish  or  Lepidonsiren, 
with  the  five  senses  and  some  vestiges  of  mind,  and  I 
believe  that  natural  selection  will  account  for  the  produc- 
tion of  every  vertebrate  animal."  (Life  &  L.,  I,  528), 
Should  one  ask  how  long  man  has  been  developing  his  lan- 
guage, I  should  say  it  is  beyond  our  power  to  answer;  nev- 
ertheless, rough  guesses  can  be  made.  Max  Mueller  says: 
"True  no  method  of  calculation  will  enable  us  to  fix  the 
time  when  Sanscrit  and  Latin  separated,  but  I  believe  if  on 
other  than  linguistic  evidence  that  date  were  fixed  at  10,000 


A  Ph'dosophictil  In(juinj  into  the  Principles  of  Relic/ion.    173 

B.  C,  tlic  students  of  lautriiage  W(;ulil  have  no  clilliculty  in 
accepting  it."  (Sci.  of  Th.  249).  A  vast  time  must  have 
rolled  into  eternity  for  the  development  of  language  as  we 
have  it  to-day,  a  time  vastly  greater  than  the  chronology  of 
the  Bible  will  warrant ;  but  philologists  and  scientists  of 
every  school  have  but  little  faith  in  the  Bible  as  a  book 
exclusively  divine.  With  the  scientists  of  the  world  our 
Bible  stands  about  on  a  level  with  the  different  bibles  of  the 
human  race.  "  I  had  gradually  come  b}' this  time  to  see 
that  the  Old  Testament  was  no  more  to  be  trusted  than  the 
sacred  books  of  the  Hindoos."  (Darwin:  Life  and  Let- 
ters, I,  277). — "  The  application  of  botanical  and  zoolo- 
gical evidence  to  determine  the  relative  age  of  rocks,  indi- 
cates one  of  the  most  gloiuous  epochs  of  modern  geognosy, 
which  has  finally,  on  the  Continent  at  least,  been  emanci- 
pated from  the  sway  of  Semitic  doctrines."  (Humboldt: 
Cosmos,  I,  272).  Knowing  what  we  do  of  the  development 
of  language,  and  of  the  nature  of  man,  we  cannot  find  in 
man's  possession  of  a  highly  elaborated  language  any  cer- 
tain proof  of  his  immortal  nature.  In  so  far,  then,  as  man 
builds  his  hopes  for  immortal  life  upon  the  fact  that  he  is  in 
possession  of  a  ver}-  complicated  and  highly  elaborated  lan- 
guage, I  find  no  certain  warrant  for  using  any  other  words 
than  those  of  Isaiah:  "  The  grave  cannot  praise  thee,  death 
cannot  celebrate  the6 ;  they  that  go  down  into  the  pit,  can- 
not hope  for  thy  truth.  Should  you  [trefer  the  words  of 
Job,  I  have  no  objections  to  giving  you  them:  "  He  that 
goeth  down  to  the  grave,  shall  come  up  no  more."  We 
have  fearlessly  and  truthfully  stated  certain  facts  in  dis- 
proof of  the  immortality  of  the  soul ;  we  will  now  notice 
some  presuin[)lions  in  di'^proof  of  it. 


174  Essays  on  God  and  3Ian, 

b:  PRESUMPTIONS     IX     DISPROOF      OF    THE    IM- 
MORTALITY OF  THE  SOUL : 

(a) :  IT  IS  POSSIBLE  THAT  MIND  IS  BUT  A  MODE 
OR  RESULT   OF  MATERIAL  ACTION : 

That  mind  can  be  a  product  of  molecular  activity,  may 
seem  horrible  to  those  brought  up  outside  philosophical 
thought ;  yet  it  is  by  no  means  impossible.  It  is  well  known 
that  every  energy  or  motion  of  the  mind  is  in  every  case  im- 
mediately preceded  by  chemical  activity.  This  seems  to 
show  that  in  some  way  unknown  to  us  physical  force  has 
been  changed  into  mental  force.  Says  Spencer:  "  That  no 
idea  or  thought  arises  save  as  a  result  of  some  physical  force 
expended  in  producing  it,  is  fast  becoming  a  common-place 
of  science ;  and  whoever  duly  weighs  the  evidence  will  see 
that  nothing  but  an  overwhelming  bias  in  favor  of  a  precon- 
ceived theory  can  explain  its  non-acceptance." 

(First  Principles,  217). 

These  are  words  of  grave  import,  not  like  the  words  of 
our  revivalists  ;  but  to  me  they  are  much  more  reasonable. 
You  may  think  mind  has  nothing  in  it  like  matter,  that  mat- 
ter has  nothing  in  it  like  mind  ;  but  we  should  know  that  we 
have  no  knowledge  whatever  of  matter  except  in  terms  of 
mind,  nor  of  mind  except  in  terms  of  matter.  Therefore, 
when  we  say  that  matter  and  mind  have  nothing  in  common, 
it  must  be  admitted  that  we  talk  about  things  we  know 
nothing  about.  For  aught  we  know  to  the  contrary,  one 
common  essence  may  underlie  them  both.  Says  Spencer: 
"Those  modes  of  the  Unknowable  which  we  call  motion, 
heat,  light,  chemical  affinity,  etc.,  arc  alike  transformable 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.    175 

into  each  other,  and  into  those  modes  of  tlie  Unknowable 
which  we  distinguish  as  sensation,  emotion,  thought:  these 
in  their  turns  being  directly  or  indirectly  re-transformable 
into  their  original  shapes.  How  this  metamorphosis  takes 
place,  how  a  force  existing  as  motion,  heat,  or  light,  t-an  be- 
come a  mode  of  consciousness,  it  is  impossible  to  fathom.  " 

(First  Prin.  217). 
We  must  not  conclude  that  such  words  drive  us  into  mate- 
rialism ;  for  Spencer  further  says:  "  "Were  we  compelled  to 
choose  between  the  alternatives  of  translating  mental  phenom- 
ena into  physical  phenomena,  or  of  translating  physical  phe- 
nomena into  mental  phenomena,  the  latter  alternative  would 
seem  the  more  acceptable  of  the  two."  (Psy.  I,  159).  Says 
Huxley :  ''  That  a  particular  molecular  motion  does  give  rise 
to  a  state  of  consciousness  is  experimentally  certain;  but  the 
how  and  why  of  tlie  process  are  just  as  inexplicable  as  in  the 
case  of  the  communication  of  kinetic  energy  by  impact." 
(The  Reign  of  Queen  Victoria,  II,  3G1).  Onl^-  the  true 
scholar  knows  his  ignorance  of  the  nature  of  mind  and  of 
matter ;  and  only  he  will  refuse  to  speak  about  matters  of 
which  he  knows  nothing.  It  is  certain  that  we  absolutely 
know  nothing  of  the  real  nature  of  matter,  therefore  nothing 
of  its  possibilities  :  nor  do  we  know  any  more  or  less  of  the 
real  nature  of  mind.  '•  We  find  the  value  of  x  in  terms  of 
y,  tlien  we  find  the  value  of  y  in  terms  of  x ;  and  so  on  we 
may  continue  forever  without  coming  nearer  to  a  solution." 

(Spencer:  Ps}-.  I.  027). 
Schopenhauer  held  that  there  is  but  one  force  in  Nature. 
Light,  heat,  motion,  electricity,  chemical  attinity,  cohesion, 
gravitation,  mind,  and  all  other  forces  by  whatever  name  we 


17G  Essays  on  God  and  Man^ 

ma}-  be  pleased  to  call  them,  are  but  varied  forms  of  the 
One  Eternal,  Immutable,  Infinite,  and  Universal  Force 
which  he  calls  Will.  This  force  acting  within  us,  that  is  sub- 
jectively, is  called  our  will ;  acting  without  us,  that  is  ob- 
jectively, it  is  called  force.  Noire  says  that  spirit  and  matter 
are  inseparable.  Spinoza  held  that  body  and  soul  are  the 
same  substance  under  different  aspects.  Kant  holds  that 
there  is  but  one  force  in  nature  under  different  forms. 
Goethe  says  there  is  no  spirit  without  matter,  nor  matter 
without  spirit.  Noire  says  "  without  sensation,  no  motion; 
without  motion,  no  sensation."  Max  Mueller  holds  that 
matter  in  the  usual  sense  of  the  word,  as  something  exist- 
ing outside  of  us,  does  not  exist.  Spirit  and  matter  are  in 
fact  correlative  terms.  '  'We  have  no  knowledge  of  mind  ex- 
cept as  annexed  to  some  arrangement  of  material  particles." 
(S.  of  Th.  609).  When  the  ablest  and  best  intellects  speak 
and  think  thus,  is  it  not  foolishness  to  suppose  that  they 
have  no  ground  for  their  belief?  It  is  hard  to  believe  that 
thought  can  be  the  product  of  matter ;  nor  do  I  believe  it  is. 
But  it  is  equally  hard  for  the  uncultivated  mind  to  believe 
that  light,  heat,  electricity,  chemical  affinity,  cohesion,  and 
whatever  other  forces  we  know,  are  the  same  force  under 
different  forms;  and  yet  we  know  they  are,  because  they  are 
convertible,  or  transformable.  That  mind  is  a  mode  or  re- 
sult of  molecular  activity,  under  certain  conditions,  is  cer- 
tainly V»elieved  by  a  great  many  most  competent  to  speak  on 
the  subject.  It  would  not  follow  from  this,  however,  that 
mind  on  the  dissolution  of  the  body,  would  be  annihilated. 
It  is  enough  for  the  purpose  to  suppose  that  our  self-con- 
sciousness is  depende.it  on  its  connection  with   our  material 


A  Philosophical  Inijniri/  into  Iha  Principles  of  Religion.    177 

organism.  Anniliilation  is  out  of  Uie  question,  is  absurd, 
untliinkable.  Tlie  quantity  of  force  in  the  universe  is  neitlier 
diniinisbed  nor  increased.  But  the  self-conscious,  individual 
raonon,  that  is  our  consciousness  of  existence,  might  cease 
to  be  l)y  a  redistribution  of  our  integrated,  individual  energ}' 
into  the  Unintegrated,  Infinite  Energy,  or  the  Universal 
Monon:  "He  my  servant  who  serveth  me  alone,  with  due 
attention,  having  overcome  the  influence  of  the  qualities,  is 
formed  to  be  absorbed  in  IJrahm,  the  Supreme."  (Vedas). 
It  follows,  therefore,  from  what  we  know  of  the  correlation 
of  matter  and  mind,  it  is  at  least  possible,  speaking  scientifi- 
call}',  that  on  the  dissolution  of  our  bodies,  we  shall  as  indi- 
viduals cease  to  exist.  Because,  therefore,  of  this  interde- 
pendence of  the  individual  consciousness  and  matter,  I  am 
unable  to  see  how  the  philosopher  can  give  anything  like  a 
satisfactory  and  decisive  answer  to  the  question  of  poor 
Job:  "If  a  man  die  shall  he  live  again?"  You  may  say 
"how  a  man  can  doubt  the  iramortalitj'  of  the  soul  I  do  not 
know."  I  answer,  all  riglit ;  if  you  do  not  know,  do  not  in- 
form us,  nor  attempt  to  inform  others.  But  I  say  to  you 
there  are  countless  numbers,  many  of  whom  have  shoe- 
latcliets  which  we  are  not  worthy  to  loosen,  who  do  disbelieve 
in  the  immortality  of  the  soul.  Aristotle  certainly  doubU'd 
the  immortality  of  the  soul,  and  probably  disbelieved  in  it 
altogether:  ".•!//«  /iJjy  nudt  (ii)u/.ri<r'.<;  y.(x>.  —jioa'.pztri'^  ra'jnr/ : 
^iioi)(y/7a'.  ij.;-j  yap  v/ia  y.ai  tiov  adw^ariov  iJrJorcC,  o'.a-^  f3af!i/.tot'.-j 
zt  Tr«>7(uv   av^/Ht»r<t»v,  y.w.  aOa/azo'.    zf^a'.  ;   —niia'.ji-.'.Tat  o   tioOtt'i  /'"/ 

.>a(T:a^  —  "Wish  and  expectation  are  not  the  same.  One  may 
wish  for  what  is  impossible,  such  as  to  rule  all  men,  or  to  be 

12 


178  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

immortal ;  but  nobody  except  a  fool  expects  the  impossible, 
such  as  immortality."  (Eud.  Eth.,  II,  10,4;  Niko.  Eth., 
Ill,  4,  7).  In  another  work  Aristotle  appears  to  state  his 
reasons  for  doubting  the  immortality  of  the  soul:  "  <l>a'.'^trat 
8s  Tiov  -/.s'.ijTuj'^  ouOev  (V/tu  (Tco/iarog  —aaytv^  aude  ttocsc^,  oiov  op- 
Y'.'^ztrda'.^  Oapptiv^  s-'.du/itcv^  6).w<;  aiffda'^effOa:.  MaXiffra  S'  toi/.v^ 
id'.iiv  TO  voijv :  £.'  (f  s(Tzi  xai  touto  ^avTama  t£9  tj  jitj  av£t>  ipwjza- 
(T'.aif,  oux  s>d£/(i'.r  av  ouds  tout  a>£u  ffco/iaTOis  tivat.  El  jivj  ou> 
STTC  Ti  To)>  T7^^  ^''^'/Ji'^  tnyoi'^  T/  ~aOr^ii.aTii)'j  (.8iiiv^  z-^'hyii'.T  ay  ccjttjv 
y(on'.!^z<rdac :  .  £i  8s  p.rjOsv  S(TTIv  i8iov  aozrj'?  oux  ay  £:;-/j  yjopiffrr^^  a/J.a 
xada-sp  Tu)  suOb'.,  jj  eoOu^  -okXa  ffu/xfiacyst,  otov  d-TSffdai  zf^i;  yaX' 
xri^  t7(fa'.pa<i  xaza  ffTiyiirfy^  oo  ps^Toi  y  di^'STat.  toutou  ywpKjdty  Tu 
suO'j  :  ay(i)p'.(TTov  yap,  s'.rzsp  ati  p.zza  (jiofw.Ttx;  Tiyo<i  taziy.  EoixiL 
8z  xa'.  rot  rry9  <J'oyr^>}  rzadr^  -a./za  t'.yai  p.sza  (7coiio.T(i^,  dajpo^y 
TzpaoTrj^,  (po[io>i,  £?.so<^^  Oapaog^  sn  /«/>«  xai  to  <s".?.s'.y  ts 
xat  ' p.i(jtv/ :  apa  yap  touto'.^  ~aaysi  ti  to  aiopa.  For 
the  most  part  it  is  evident  that  apart  from  the  body  we 
can  have  no  feeling  such  as  longing,  taking  courage,  desir- 
ing, —  in  general,  sensation.  That  which  most  of  all  ap- 
pears to  belong  exclusivelj'  to  the  soul,  is  thought ;  but  if 
this  is  a  kind  of  phantasm  or  not  without  phantasm,  it 
would  not  be  admitted  that  even  this  could  exist  apart  from 
the  body.  If,  therefore,  any  operation  of  mind  or  sensa- 
tion belongs  to  the  soul  independently  of  the  body,  it  might 
be  admitted  that  the  soul  could  exist  apart  from  the  body : 
l)ut  if  the  soul  has  no  such  peculiar  characteristic,  then 
could  it  not  exist  without  the  body.  But  as  in  the  case  of  a 
straight  line,  when  directed,  many  things  happen  to  it  such 
as  the  touching  a  brass  ball  with  its  terminal  point,  although 
the  line  separated  (from  the  body  to  which  it  belongs  such 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Relkjioii.   170 

as  a  stick)  could  not  t(nuh  the  ball,  iiiasinuch  as  tiic  line 
could  not  be  separated  (from  the  stick)  since  it  exists  only 
in  connection  with  a  body,  —  thus  do  all  sensations  of  the 
soul  appear  to  exist  only  in  connection  with  the  ))ody,  such 
as  anger,  mildness,  fear,  pity,  courage,  joy,  love  and  hatred: 
for  by  all  these  is  the  body  affected." 

(l)e  Anima,  I,  1,  11-14). 

No  words  it  seems  i\)  nie  could  with  more  certainty  tell  of 
the  deep  doubt  of  Aristotle  in  the  immortality  of  the  soul 
than  these.  The  i)oint  is  a  part  of  the  line,  and  is  lost  with 
the  latter's  destruction  ;  as  the  point  disapi)ears  with  the 
destruction  of  the  line,  so  is  lost  man's  personal  conscious- 
ness on  the  dissolution  of  the  l)ody  with  which  that  con- 
sciousness a[)pears  indissolubly  connected. 

Do  not  enlarge  the  meaning  of  these  words.  It  is  most  im- 
portant that  you  should  not  misunderstand  the  teachings  of 
Aristotle  of  whom  Darwin  said  :  "  Linnaeus  and  Cuvier  have 
been  my  two  gods,  but  they  were  mere  school-boys  to  old 
Aristotle."  The  views  of  so  great,  so  good,  so  noble  a 
man  as  Aristotle,  shoidd  and  must  have  great  weight. 
Taking  out  of  his  different  works  his  remarks  on  this  subject 
and  comparing  them,  we  can  only  say  tliat  they  eveiywhere 
show  his  doul)t  in  the  immortality  of  the  soul ;  we  cannot 
say  for  a  certainty  that  they  show  his  absolute  disbelief  in 
it,  "When  under  natural  laws  such  wonderful  transforma- 
tions take  place  as  we  witness  every  day,  it  would  be  un- 
philosophical  in  us  to  assign  limits  to  the  perishable  works 
of  the  hidden  forces  of  nature.  Who  would  imagine  that  a 
few  atoms  under  those  laws  could  make  the  perfume  of  the 
rose,   the   beauty  of  the  morning-glory,   the  grace  of  the 


180  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

lily?  Yet  none  of  ns  doubts  that  in  death  tliey  die  to  live 
no  more.  Who  would  imagine  that  from  the  simplest 
specks  of  protoplasm  there  could  be  evolved,  obeying  tlie 
hidden  Spirit,  the  gorgeous  flowers  of  our  garden,  the  cun- 
ning fox,  the  swift  eagle,  the  ferocious  tiger,  the  kingl}'  lion, 
the  sagacious  elephant,  the  mathematical  spider,  the  singing 
bird,  the  talking  ' parrot,  the  social  beaver  and  ant?  Yet 
none  of  us  doubts  that  on  the  dissolution  of  their  bodies, 
they  lie  down  to  rise  no  more  for  ever.  Owing  therefore  to 
the  fact  that  the  individual  consciousness  and  matter  appear 
inseparable,  that  matter  and  mind  appear  different  sides  of 
the  same  thing ;  owing  to  the  fact  that  of  mind  apart  from 
matter,  and  of  matter  apart  from  mind,  we  know  absolutely 
nothing, — it  must  be  admitted  that  there  are  grounds  for 
doubting  the  immortality  of  the  soul.  That  what  I  now 
have  stated  is  true,  is  sufficiently  proved  by  the  position  of 
the  scientific  world  on  this  subject,  which  is  one  of  agnosti- 
cism. Indeed,  Max  Mueller  thinks  any  other  position  un- 
wise: "Surely,  the  more  we  learn  what  knowledge  really 
means,  the  more  we  feel  that  agnosticism,  in  the  true  sense 
of  the  word,  is  the  only  possible,  the  only  reverent,  and,  I 
may  add,  the  only  Christian  position  which  the  human  mind 
can  occupy  before  the  Unknown  and  Unknowable." 

(Science  of  Thought,  104). 
The  world  is  full  to-da}^  of  men  like  Job  ;  in  their  uncer- 
tainty they  are  heard  repeating  his  words:  "  There  is  hope 
of  a  tree  if  it  be  cut  down,  that  it  will  sprout  again,  and  the 
tender  branches  thereof  will  not  cease.  Though  the  root 
thereof  wax  old  in  the  earth,  and  the  stock  thereof  die  in 
the  ground;  yet  through  the  scent  of  water  it  will  bud,  and 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Princiijles  of  Reliyion.   181 

bring  forth  boughs  like  a  plant.  But  a  man  dieth  and 
wasteth  away :  yea,  man  givcth  up  the  ghost,  and  where  is 
he?  As  the  waters  fall  from  the  sea,  and  the  flood  decayeth 
and  drieth  up;  so  man  lieth  down,  and  riseth  not:  till  the 
heavens  be  no  more,  they  shall  not  awake,  nor  be  raised  out 
of  their  sleep."  If  you  say  Job  should  have  known  better, 
the  earnest  and  truth-loving  scientist  will  sa}'  to  you  what 
God  is  reported  to  have  said  to  Job:"  "  Have  the  gates  of 
death  been  opened  unto  thee?  or  hast  thou  seen  the  doors 
of  the  shadow  of  death?  Verily,  the  answer  of  every  living 
being  must  be,  "no."  So,  therefore,  as  you  do  not  know 
about  this  any  more  than  Job,  you  ought  not  to  think  it 
wonderful,  if  on  this  subject  a  multitude  of  the  best  and 
wisest  profess  to  be  agnostics. 

(b)  :  IT  IS  POSSIBLE  THAT  THE  INDIVIDUAL  MIND 
IS  BUT  A  MODE  OF  ACTION  OF  THE  INFINITE 
MIND : 

It  has  been  held  and  is  held  by  very  many  that  all  the 
varied  forms  of  existences,  sentient  and  insentient,  are  but 
modes  or  manifestations  of  the  One  Infinite  and  Universal 
Existence ;  that  all  the  varied  forms  of  intelligences  are  but 
modes,  manifestations,  scintillations,  or  fulgurations,  of  the 
One  Iinmuiable,  Infinite,  Paternal,  and  Universal  Conscious- 
ness, God.  This  part  of  our  subject  is  even  more  difficult 
than  what  has  proceeded,  and  can  only  be  hinted  at  before 
a  mixed  audience.     Says  Aristotle: 


182  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

zooToo  (TWTr^pta^.  J'.o  xn:  tuj/  -aXaicov  et~stv  Ttvi^  TrporjV' 
Or^trw^  iizi  7:a-/za  zaura  etrzc  Siojv  tt^zU.  —  It  is  an  old 
saying  well  known  to  all  of  us  that  all  things  are  of  God, 
and  by  God  for  us  established ;  that  nothing  can  exist 
if  deprived  of  God  as  its  salvation.  Therefore,  it  was  the 
custom  of  the  old  writers  to  maintain  that  all  things  are  full 
of  the  divine  Presence."  (De  Mundo  VI,  2-3). 

The  problems  of  the  universe  are  deep,  and  it  is  more 
than  possible  that  in  attempting  to  solve  them  the  most  ca- 
pable  and  reverent  mind  may  stray;  nevertheless,  while  the 
finite  mind  exists,  it  cannot  cease  attempting  to  find  out  the 
waj'S  of  the  Infinite  God.  We  look  upon  the  swelling 
bosom  of  the  mighty  ocean,  boundless,  fathomless  ;and  ever 
and  anon  waves,  bubbles,  drops,  spray,  or  foam  ai)pear. 
We  think  of  the  atmosphere  which  envelops  us,  and  we  feel 
the  motion  of  air,  a  gentle  breeze,  a  gale.  We  look  at  a  burn- 
ing candle,  and  see  a  tongue  of  flame  dart  here  and  there. 
We  turn  our  eyes  toward  the  heavens  and  become  conscious 
of  t'.ie  existence  of  sun,  moon,  or  stars  by  the  sensation  of 
light.  Yet  we  never  think  of  the  wave,  or  the  breeze,  or 
the  tongue  of  flame,  or  tlie  ray  of  light  as  possessing  ind'  - 
pendent  existence.  These  are  but  modes  or  manifestations 
of  the  bodies  to  which  they  belong.  Thus  do  many  think 
of  our  dependence  on  God.  Leibnitz  taught  that  all  finite 
creatures,  all  existences,  are  but  fulgurations,  or  manifesta- 
tions of  tlie  One  Infinite  Intelligence ;  Kant  and  Mayer 
hold  that  all  finite  forces,  whatever  they  may  be,  rational, 
or  irrational,  are  but  modes,  or  scintillations  of  the  One 
Eternal  and  Unchangeable  Force  ;  Spinoza,  one  of  the  most 
powerful  and  devout  minds,  believed  that  all  finite  bodies 


A  Philosophiiid  Iitfjnir'/  int'i  the  Principles  of  Religion.   183 

are  but  modes  or  raoditicatioiis  of  tlu;  One  Infinite  and  Eter- 
nal Body  or  God.  Against  this  pliilosophy  some  present 
what  they  call  the  freedom  of  the  will ;  but  the  freedom  of 
the  will  is  what  has  never  been  conclusively  established,  and 
something  which  is  involved  in  unfathomaljle  mystery.  I 
may  say  that  it  cannot  be  i)roved  liut  that  in  every  case  the 
action  we  choose  to  do,  that  is  the  action  under  volition,  is 
determined  by  the  appetences  called  into  play  by  the  phan- 
tasm. If  tliis  latter  couM  be  proved,  it  would  of  course 
follow  that  every  action  of  mind  or  body  is  determined,  and 
has  its  true  cause  in  God.  Our  individual  consciousnesses 
would  be  but  scintillations  or  modes  of  the  One  Universal 
Consciousness  ;  our  minds  but  fulgurations,  emissions, 
of  the  One  Infinite  IVIind  ;  our  thought  but  the  movement  of 
the  Universal  Tliouglit ;  our  lives  but  bubbles  on  the  Infi- 
nite Sea ;  and  all  the  movements  of  finite  intelligences  but 
bright  sparks  from  the  One  Universal  Sun.  Says  the 
Vedas:  "Time  ripens  and  dissolves  all  beings  in  the  great 
Self;  "  which  means  that  as  bubbles  rise  upon  the  ocean's 
surface,  and  bursting  lose  their  individualities  in  the  womb 
whieh  gave  them  birth  ;  so  man  and  all  finite  things  lose  at 
death  their  individualities  by  absor[)tion  in  the  Infinite 
Womi)  from  wiiicli  tliev  sprung;  or  by  falling  into  the  Uni- 
versal Self,  the  One  Unknown  nml  forever  Unknowable. 

I  have  finished  my  discourse  on  the  Facts  and  Presump- 
tions in  Disproof  of  the  Immortality  of  the  Soul.  I  have 
labored  hard  to  present  those  facts  and  presurai)tions  in  a 
manner  as  clear  and  intelligible  as  the  subject  itself  would 
permit.  I  have  spared  myself  no  pains  either  of  mind  or 
heart.     From  none  has  the  grave  taken  greater  riches  than 


184  Essays  on  God  and  3fun, 

from  me  ;  no  heart  has  been  made  more  desolate  by  the  rav- 
ages of  Death  than  has  mine ;  no  soul  can  have  greater 
cause  to  hope  for  immortality  than  I ; — 3'et  I  have  never 
opened  the  gates  of  death,  nor  pierced  the  darkness  which 
shi'ouds  the  tomb.  I  have  honestly,  truthfully,  set  before 
you  some  of  my  thoughts.  Sincerely  do  I  hope  that  the}^ 
moy  make  you,  above  all  things  else,  thinking  men  and  true  ; 
for  such  and  such  only  shall  enter  into  possession  of  what- 
ever life  tiiere  may  be  found  beyond  the  grave.  But 
since  none  of  us  has  ever  experienced  that  life,  and 
none  of  our  friends,  whose  bodies  we  laid  in  the  greedy 
grave,  has  ever  returned  to  tell  of  his  experience ;  I  can 
give  you  no  more  important  question,  just  now,  than  that 
asked  by  Job:   "  If  a  man  die,  shall  he  live  again?" 

B:  SOME  REASONS  IN  PROOF  OF  THE  IMMOR- 
TALITY OF  THE  SOUL. 

In  our  last  lecture  on  "  The  Facts  and  Presumptions  in 
Disproof  of  the  Immortality  of  the  Soul,"  we  made  it  quite 
clear  that  there  are  grounds  for  doubting  man's  immortal 
nature,  and  that  these  doubts  prevail  much  more  widely 
with  the  educated  than  with  the  uneducated.  Disbelief  in 
immortality  does  not  carry  with  it,  as  some  unreasonably  de- 
clare, and  others  foolishly  fear,  atheism.  A  man  might  be 
a  profound  theist  without  believing  in  immortality.  I  may 
say  more :  he  might  be  very  religious  without  believing  in 
it.  Wliether  our  life  be  long  or  short,  life  cannot  be  prop- 
erly lived  except  in  accord  with  the  laws  of  nature.  The 
life  most  in  accord  with  the  laws  of  nature,  must  necessari- 
ly 1)6  most  in  accord   with  the  will  of  the  Creator ;  for  the 


A  Philosopltfnd  Ltquir;/  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.    185 

laws  of  nature  are  but  the  operations  of  that  will.  There- 
fore, since  we  are  obliged  to  atlmit  that  he  who  lielievingly 
lives  most  in  accord  with  the  will  of  God,  is  he  who  lives 
best  and  most  religiously  ;  and  since  we  have  seen  that  living 
most  in  accord  with  the  will  of  Tiod,  is  the  same  as  living 
most  in  accord  with  the  laws  of  nature,  — it  follows  that  he 
who  lives  most  in  accord  with  the  laws  of  nature,  is  he  who, 
in  the  best  and  truest  sense,  lives  most  religiously'.  This 
will  sound  strange  to  man}'  of  you;  but  truth  frequentl}' 
sounds  most  strange,  whether  falling  from  the  lips  of  the 
Man  of  Nazareth  or  any  other  of  the  world's  redeemers.  We 
cannot  deny  that  whether  our  life  be  long  or  short,  it  pa3's 
us  to  live  in  accord  with  the  laws  of  nature;  and  from  what 
we  have  before  said,  it  therefore  pays  us  to  be  religious. 
The  definition  we  have  given  of  religion,  would  not  be  ac- 
ceptable to  the  average  Christian ;  yet,  speaking  philo- 
sophically, it  is  impossible  to  give  or  receive  any  other  defini- 
tion ;  and  with  such  a  definition,  a  man  can  and  ought  to  be 
religious,  whether  he  believes  he  will  live  after  death  or  not. 
There  is  ver^-  much  of  religion  not  only  not  in  accord  with 
the  laws  of  nature,  but  absolutel}''  at  variance  with  it.  It 
does  not  follow  from  this,  however,  that  such  religion  is 
hurtful ;  for  its  adherents  may  be  incapable  of  appreciating 
anything  higher,  and  without  it,  might  become  still  more  de- 
graded. 

In  so  far  as  man  fails  to  be  at  one  with  tlie  laws  of  his  be- 
ing and  the  laws  of  nature  in  general,  to  that  degree  must  he 
fail  to  experience  that  happiness  and  perfection  consequent 
only  upon  living  in  accord  with  the  laws  of  nature.  Man 
cannot  afford  to  be  at  variance" with  those  laws,  whether  for 


1S()  JS'.s.sY/ys  OH   God  lotd  Man, 

a  minute  or  au  indefinite  time.  The  wise  man,  therefore, 
whether  he  believes  in  immortality  or  not,  will  live  most  in 
accord  witli  the  laws  of  nature ;  therefore  most  in  accord 
with  the  will  of  God ;  therefore  most  religiously. 
However  his  religion  may  differ  from  that  of  the  unculti- 
vated or  the  superstitious,  and  differ  it  certainly  will ;  he, 
nevertheless,  will  live  carefully,  sacredly,  religiously.  The 
wise  man,  more  than  an}'  other,  knows  well  that  righteous- 
ness exalteth  a  nation,  and  that  it  does  so  because  it  exalt- 
eth  its  citizens.  Righteousness  has  a  manifold  reward.  It 
blesses  the  actor  ;  it  clioers  hisdescent  like  the  dews  of  heav- 
en the  parched  vegetation  ;  but  this  is  not  all :  it,  more  than 
all  things  else,  leads  humanity  onward  toward  the  end  for 
which  it  exists.  Let  it  be  understood,  tlierefore,  that 
we  emphatically  deny  that  irreligion  must  follow  disbelief  in 
immortality ;  and  that  we  as  emphatically  affirm  that  im- 
mortality or  no  iramortalit}',  the  wise  man  will,  and  does, 
live  a  religious  life.  The  reward  for  righteous  living  is  not 
postpQne<l.  It  is  true  that  a  life  lived  long  in  accord  with 
the  laws  of  nature,  may  blossom  as  the  rose ;  but  every 
righteous  act  has  its  own  reward.  The  corolla  which  looks 
so  beautiful,  is  but  an  assemblage  of  petals;  the  life  which 
is  so  harmonious,  is  l)ut  a  converging  of  the  myriad  invisi- 
ble blessings  which  one  by  one  have  followed  righteous  liv- 
ing. The  reward  for  living  in  accord  with  the  laws  of  na= 
ture,  is  not  postponed.  If  nowhere  else,  at  least  on  earth 
the  abode  of  the  righteous  is  heaven.  In  like  manner  is 
punishment  not  postponed.  True,  the  myriad  acts  in  vio- 
lence of  the  laws  of  nature,  by  converging  must  come  down 
upon  the  soul  as  a  devastating  flood ;  yet,  certain  it  is  that 


A  J  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   1H7 

here,  too,  a  myriad  punishments,  perceived  or  unperceived, 
have  preceded.  Punishment  is  not  postponed.  If  nowhere 
else,  at  least  on  earth  the  abode  of  the  wicked  is  liell.  Be 
not  deceived,  therefore:  immortality  or  no  immortality,  the 
wise  man  will  live  a  life  in  acrord  willi  the  laws  of  nature, 
a  life  sacfed,  a  life  religious  as  well  for  himself  and  his 
immediate  descent  as  for    the    brotherhood    of    humanity. 

a:  HUMANITY    AS    A   WHOLE    BELIEVES    IN     IM- 
MORTALITY : 

That -humanity  as  a  whole  does  believe,  and  under  certain 
conditions  always  has  believed,  in  immortality,  none  qualified 
to  speak  on  the  subject  will  for  a  moment  doubt.  I  say  un- 
der certain  conditions  ;  because  it  is  not  true  as  some  sup-. 
pose  that  this  belief  is  innate  or  universal,  or  prevalent  at 
all  times  tlirough  all  degrees  of  civilization.  We  have  every 
reason  for  asserting  that  in  the  lower  stages  of  development 
or  evolution,  humanity  has  no  belief  in  immortality;  that 
such  belief  is  entertained  only  at  a  comparatively  advanced 
stage  of  development.  I  am  not  unacquainted  with  the 
fact  that  this  belief  is  some  times  found  among  people  ex- 
tremely low  in  civilization ;  but  this  is  because  such  people 
are  degraded,  and  the  belief  but  a  monument  of  a  higher 
development  from  which  they  have  fallen.  From  the  higher 
stage  of  mentality  exliibited  by  the  most  scholarly  mind  to 
that  point  in  human  existence  where  first  the  genus  homo 
emerged  from  the  purely  animal,  t'.iere  are  innumerable  de- 
grees, at  some  one  or  other  of  which  the  light  of  human  reason 
first  shone  in.  This  bursting  forth  of  human  reason  has 
generally  resulted,  after  indefinite  cultivation,  in  a  belief  in 


]88  Essays  on  God  and  3Ian^ 

the  immortality  of  tlie  soul.  Belief  ia  immortality,  there- 
fore, though  not  universally  prevalent  in  time  or  space,  does 
appear  to  be  a  product  of  the  reason  alike  conditioned  and 
privileged.  While,  therefore,  there  are  tribes  who  do  not 
believe  in  immortality,  who  have  not  even  a  name  for  God  ; 
while  a  man  taken  in  infancy  from  the  rest  of  mankind  and 
ke[)t  apart  from  all  human  association,  would  have  no  idea 
whatever  of  immortality  or  God,  except  so  far  as  it  was  the 
result  of  inheriting  "  accumulated  increments  of  faculty  suc- 
cessivel}^  organized;"  (Spencer:  Sociology,  II,  529) 
and  while  there  are  countless  numbers  of  individuals 
highly  educated,  and  living  in  tlie  most  civilized  com- 
munities, who  have  no  belief  in  the  immortality  of  the 
soul,  yet  the  fact  remains,  that  humanity  as  a  whole  does 
believe  and  always  has  believed  that  man  is  immortal ; 
and  this  belief  we  reassert  to  be  a  product  of  the  reason 
alike  conditioned  and  privileged.  Man  changes  with  the  age 
in  which  he  lives.  If  he  moulds  the  age,  he  is  in  turn 
moulded  by  it.  His  ideas  of  humanity,  his  ideas  of  himself, 
his  ideas  of  God,  all  change  with  the  advancement  of  his 
own  reason:  "  From  the  demon  thought  of  liy  the  savage," 
says  Spencer,  "under  a  form  equally  concrete  with  that  of 
the  enemy  he  fights,  up  to  that  most  abstract  consciousness 
of  Universal  Power,  to  which  a  scattered  few  have  reached, 
there  is  a  progress  made  possible  only  by  that  development 
of  faculty  which  advancing  civilization  has  produced." 
(Sociology  II,  527.)  From  whatever  standpoint  scientific 
men  investigate  the  nature  and  the  origin  of  man,  they  all 
agree  that  t'.iere  was  a  time  in  human  development  when 
man  became  man ;  and  up  to  this   time  he  lived  for  untold 


A  PliilosopJn'rdl  Inqiunj  into  the  J'rincijles  of  Religion.   189 

aeons,  in  d i If L'lent  stages  of  (k'veloi)raont,  a  mcruaiiiinal.     In 
this  biologists  are   sufficiently    unanimous  ;  and   their  creed 
was  fairly  enunciated  last  August    (1887),  by  the  president 
of   the   American    Scientific    Association,    when   he   said: 
"American  biologists  stand  as  a  unit  for  Evolution."     In 
this  opiniDU  the  representatives  of  every  science  fully  con- 
cur.    As  a  philologist,  Geiger  says:   "  Reason  does  not  date- 
from  all  eternity  ;  language  has  created  reason  ;  it  has  had 
its  own  developeinent.  "     Says  Kant :   "  jMan  was  not  alwa3-s 
rational,   he  became  rational  through  his   own  exertions." 
And  he  further  says  that  it  is  "  quite  possible  under  the  in- 
fluence of  great  evolutions  of  nature,  a  new  epoch  maj'  still 
follow  in   which  the  Ourang-Outang    and  the  Chimpanzee 
might  develop  their  organs  of  walking,  grasping,  and  talk- 
ing into  that  of  man."     Says  Max  Mueller :   "  The  explana- 
tion of  the  actual  origin  of  roots  must  naturally  retain  some- 
thing of  an  hypothetical   character,  like  the  solution  of  all 
problems  which  carry  us  back  to  times  when  man  can  hardl}' 
be  said  to  have  become  man,  wlien  language  was  not  yet 
language   and  reason  not   yet  reason."     (S.  of  Th.   54 H). 
With  these  opinions.  Noire  who  is  a  thorough  Darwinian  in 
princli)le,  fully  agrees.     Under  whatever  aspect  we  investi- 
gate the  nature  and  the  history  of  man,  profound  study 
leads  us  alike  in  every  case  to  the  conclusion  that  strife  is 
the  great  cause  of  all  development,  that  language  is  the  work 
of  unknown  ages,  that  reason  is  largely  the  work  of  language, 
that  both  are  the  work  of  evolution,  and  that  belief  in  the 
immortality  of  the  soul  is  arrived  at  only  at  a  comparatively 
late  stage  in  human  development.     But,  yet,  we  are  forced 
to  admit  that  this  belief  is  one  which  is  evolved  generall}- 


190  Esscnjs  on   God  and  Man, 

by  all  humanity  alike  conditioned  and  privileged.  This  fact 
I  consider  the  first  and  a  strong  evidence  in  proof  of  the 
dogma  of  the  immortality  of  the  soul. 

b:  THE  FACT  THAT  BELIEF  IN  MAN'S  IMxAIOR- 
TAL  NATURE  SEEMS  CONSONANT  WITH 
PHILOSOPHY: 

As  we  have  shown  that  belief  in  immortality  is  a  develop- 
ment of  the  reason,  it  would  be  natural  that   such  belief 
should  be  agreeable  to  the  highest  researches  of  the  reason  ; 
ethei'wise,  reason  would  happen  at  variance  with  itself.     It 
does  not  follow  from   this,   however,  that  there  have  not 
been,  or  that  there  are  not  to-day,  man}'  philosophers  who 
deny  the  immortality  of  the  soul.     On  the  contiar}-,  there 
have  V)een,  and  always  will  be  under  existing  conditions, 
many  who  deny  it.     But  we  should  remember  that  irregu- 
larities belong  to  all  finite  movements,   and,  therefore,  to 
the  reason.     Every  member  of  the  solar  system,  and  proba- 
bly of  every  other  system,  belongs  to  move  in  an  elliptical 
orbit ;    yet,  these  regular,  natural  movements  are  not  free 
from    irregular    movements    or    perturbations.     But    with 
deeper  knowledge  these  perturbations  themselves  are  seen 
to  be  but  a  part  of  the  many  complicated  movements  which 
are  the  necessary  results  of  forces  acting  under  unchanging 
and  unchangeable  laws.     The  moon's  acceleration  gave  at 
one  time  great  anxiety  to  astronomers.     Finally  La  Place 
was  thought  to  have  discovered  the  cause  of  this  irregular- 
ity in  the  differentiation  of  the  earth's  eccentricity.     His 
explanation  subjected  to  the  powerful,  matliematical  mind  of 
Adams  was   found   insufficient   to   account   for  the  whole 
acceleration.     This  great  man  found  the  remaining  cause  in 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  lieiigion.   191 

the  slightly  clon<^ate<l  i)eriod  of  the  earth's  diunial  rotation 
caused  by  tidal  action.  Thus  irregularities  prove  regulari- 
ties, confusion  is  discovered  to  be  order.  In  the  world  of 
reason  there  are  also  perturbations ;  but  these  as  those 
before  mentioned  are  seen  on  deeper  thought  to  be  but 
natural  results,  thcrefoi-e  beneficial.  The  normal  orbits  of 
heavenly  bodies  aie  ellipses.  Although  the  eccentricity  of 
the  same  orbit  may  var\',  and  those  of  different  orbits  differ 
one  from  another,  it  nevertheless  remains  a  fact  that  the  nor- 
mal orbit  is  an  ellipse.  Thus  it  appears  that  belief  in  the 
immortality  of  the  soul  is  a  normal  belief.  Our  own  faith 
in  it  may  and  does  var}',  and  the  faiths  of  different  men 
may  and  do  differ  one  from  another ;  yet  the  fact  remains 
that  with  all  its  perturbations  human  reason  is  wont  to 
return  to  its  normal  [josilion  which  is  not  a  certainty  con- 
cerning this,  but  a  well-grounded  hope  in  the  immortality  of 
the  soul.  And  that  these  perturbations  are  beneficial  we 
should  not  for  a  moment  doubt.  They  set  up  a  friction,  a 
strife,  and  they  result  no  less  in  a  reaction  of  the  reason 
against  exaggeration,  than  in  a  general  brightening  and 
cleansing.  If  they  prove  powerless  to  throw  the  human 
soul  altogether  out  of  its  orbit ;  they  prove  sufficiently'  pow- 
erful to  take  away  from  tlu'  reason  all  grounds  of  boasting. 
If  they  reveal  to  us  our  uncertainty,  they  also  discover  to 
us  our  strength  :  they  forbid  us  t<}  despair.  The  noble  soul 
lives  for  eternity  ;  but  were  his  life  to  end  in  the  grave,  he 
would  not  alter  his  mode  of  living.  "With  the  length  and 
manner  of  his  life  he  is  content.  He  manifests  the  truth  of 
Cicero's  words: 

"Quod  cuique  temporis  ad  vivendum  datur,  eo  debit  esse 
contentus."  (Cato  Major,  IX). 


192  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

The  whole  line  of  philosophers,  with  but  few  exceptions, 
have  lived  in  hope  of  an  immortal  life.  Their  profound 
study  and  hroad  speculations  have  not  resulted  in  lessening 
this  hope.  Of  the  ancient  philosophers  it  may  certainly  be 
said,  that  whether  we  compare  them  with  Christians  or  non- 
Christians,  no  human  beings  have  ever  happened  more 
worthy  of  immortality.  Their  devotion  to  their  work,  their 
profound  investigations,  their  discriminating  observations, 
their  valuable  discoveries,  their  grand  productions  in 
science,  literature,  and  art, —  these  to-day  are  the  admira- 
tion of  all  scholars,  and  serve  as  the  world's  great  granary 
of  thought.  In  the  breasts  of  these  great  souls,  with  but 
few  exceptions,  the  hope  of  immortal  life  burned  brightly. 
In  this  hope  they  lived ;  in  this  hope  they  died. 
Says  Zoroaster :  —  * 

"  Or',   ^o/fj   -up   du'^aiizt   Tzazpo^   ouffa   ^ascvov^ 

AOavarog  fj.sv-c,  xat   Cw>j?  dsffrort?  strrt:      .      .      . 

Oudev   fhr^Tov   z/oona^  vXt]   i^hndzv   /j-SfieOsutreTat. — 
The  soul,  being  a  bright  fire  by  the  power  of  the  Father, 
remains   immortal   and   is   mistress  of  life.     .     .     .     The 
human  soul  in  some  manner  or  other  clasps  God  to  itself  =*' 

Pherecydes :  — 

This  philosopher  lived  about  the  year  GOO  before  Christ. 
Pherecydes  is  said  by  Cicero  to  have  been  the  first  who  wrote 
in  prose  on  the  attributes  of  God,  and  the  first  who  in  prose 
plainly  set  forth  the  doctrine  of  the  immortality  of  the  soul. 

Pythagoras :  — 

This  great  philosopher  lived  contemporaneously  with 
Pherecydes  and  of  the  latter  he  was  a  pupil.     He  was  so 


A  Philosopliical  Jn(/nir>/  into  the  Prinfiph's  of  Udiijion.    193 

great  and  good  that  by  many  he  was  called  the  son  of  God. 
Pythagoras  taught  that  the  soul  is  sent  into  tiie  human  body 
at  the  time  of  birth  ;  and  that  after  the  death  of  the  body  the 
soul  continues  to  live,  entering  on  stage  upon  stage  of  exis- 
tence, until,  thus  gradual!}'  ap[)roaching  its  source,  it  finally 
arrives  at  the  i)erfection  of  virtue  and  happiness. 
Socrates:  — 

'•'"'Il'ii'.i  jiZ'^  yap   et>;jLzV   (,''0/r^^  ^tt»<»   aOavarov   ev 
f)-^r^T(0   y.aflt'.ijyiiv^o'j    ifpoupuo  — 

For  we  are  soul,  an  immortal  being  shut  up  in  a  mortal 
prison."  (Axiochus  3G5). 

"  Oijy.  r^frdr/trai  on  aOavarog  'rjrxiov  ij  (J'u^rj  xai  oude7:oTt  aTz'okku- 
rat,      .      .      El  (f  sTTt  Tooff"  ouTco^  •X"'''i  I'^V    «^-'''"  '■f  stvat   to  auTO 

s'.r^  — 

Dost  thou  not  know  that  our  soul  is  immortal?  that  it 
never  can  be  destro3'ed?  .  .  .  If  it  can  be  true  that 
nothing  but  soul  can  move  itself,  then  would  it  necessarily 
follow  that  soul  is  unbegotten  and  deathless." 

(Civitas  X,  608  ;  Phaedrus  XXIV,  246). 

^^ Eoda'.fj.(j>t(jTii/i>'.  z'.atv  6c  zxzc  rcov  e'^dads^  xai  r^djj  rev  Xotrrov 
yp(r/ir^  aO'V/aTiit  t'.fT'./  — 

The  inhabitants  of  Hades  are  happier  than  we,  and  hence- 
forth they  die  no  more."  (-^pology  XXXII). 

"  E'tir/Zdi  (tpa  Oa^aTdU  e~t  rov  u-^diKu-ir^  ro  /isv  0-^r-tr^^  w<^ 
zt)'.xB\/,  auziiu  a^od'/r^Tx^tj  to  5'  «0a>«roy  fToj.i  X'lt  ao'.acOooov  ocve- 
Tii'.  a~'.ir^  h7:z./.ywpri<Ta-^  zui  Oir^azw.  .  .  Il<v/Z(>^  ana  paXkov 
<^'Uyr^  adu'/azir^  xat  a'/uiXtOpo'^  — 

Death  entering  into  a  man,  the  mortal  part  of  him,  as  it 
■were,  dies;  but  the  immortal  part  goes  away,  escaping  out 

ir> 


11'4  Essa;js  on  God  and  Man, 

from  under  death.  Of  every  living  person  the  soul  is  im- 
mortal and  indestructible."  (Phado  LVI). 

"  01  dz  8rj  ai'  dii^cuai  dca^epovzuji;  Trpo^  to  oaicu^  jS'.ojyw.^  oorn'. 
stfftv  6i  tu»Sb  fjLzV  T()~u)y  Tu)'>  ev  rij  ^)j  zXzoBz pooiiz'^o'.  r-  y.w.  n-aX- 
XaTToiif^oi  xai  U)(r~ti)  dz(TfuuTr^(i'.oj'^^  /r^uj  (T  c;^  rr^j  /.adaiia^i  wz/.r^avj 
(Kp'.Y.'/ooiiv^ot  xat  srr:  rr^'i  <n/.'.X.<>liv/(>'..  zooziov  S' aoror^  J:  (ptXoaocp'.a 
/za>a»9  xadrjpaiizvoi  a-jt'j  zt  <j(o;xij.r(i)>  ^ojrrc  ro  7:a/>a~u,i  z'.^  ro 
iTTi.'ra  ypir^ii'/,  yji'.  £19  i}'.<rjnz'.^  rr:  rooziov  /.nkktaU';  (Hf'.y.>uuy- 
za'..  d^  (i'>Zz.  pao'.ii'/  or^KioG i:  irjQi'  o  yiio/a^    l/.w^o-;   z'j  zio    Tzaiio'^z'.  — 

But  those  who  appear  more  excellent  than  others  by  the 
purity  of  their  lives,  these  are  they  who,  freed  from  these 
earthly  places,  prisons  as  it  were,  ascending  upward,  inhabit 
a  purer  clime.  Of  these  those  who  have  been  sufficiently 
cleansed  by  philosophy,  live  for  the  rest  of  time  without 
bodies  and  inhabit  still  more  beautiful  dwellings,  so  beauti- 
ful that  it  is  not  easy  to  describe  them,  nor  does  time  now 
permit."  (Phaido  LXII). 

Plato :  — 

This  great  philosopher  was  a  disciple  of  Socrates.  He 
taught  that  God  was  the  soul  of  the  universe ;  that  the  soul 
of  man  partakes  of  the  nature  of  this  Universal  Soul ;  that  it 
is  sent  from  heaven  into  human  bodies  as  into  prison-houses, 
at  the  time  of  birth  ;  and  that  at  death  it  returns  to  the  un- 
seen world  and  there  lives  in  such  a  state  as  its  pre-existence 
may  have  fitted  it  for.  The  immortality  of  the  soul  is  a 
doctrine  which  everywhere  pervades  the  writings  of  Plato. 
The  works  of  this  pliilosopher  were  greatly  admired  by  the 
early  Christian  Fathers. 

The  Alexandrians :  — 

The  Alexandrian  school  of  philosophy  was  founded  upon 


A   Philosophical  Inquiry  mto  the  Principles  of  Heligion.    195 

the  teachings  of  Plato.  These  philosophers,  however  much 
they  opposed  some  of  the  tenets  of  Christianit}',  at  all  times 
asserted  the  immortality  of  the  soul.  Jamblicus  taught  that 
the  essence  of  the  soul  is  the  same  as  that  of  the  Universal 
Spirit  or  God,  and  that  it  enjoys  communion  with  God 
through  prayer,  sacrifices,  hymns,  lustrations,  etc.  Por- 
phyry held  that  man's  soul  came  originally  out  from  God, 
and  that  at  death,  it  again  returns  to  him  from  wiiom  it  pro- 
ceeded. Plotinus  taught  that  the  human  soul  comes  out  of 
the  Universal  Soul,  and  that  after  death  it  goes  into  another 
state  of  existence  suited  to  the  character  of  its  former  life. 

Homer :  — 

In  this  great  poet  the  doctrine  of  tlie  immortality  of  the 
soul  stands  clearly  forth.  Wlieu  Ulysses  visits  the  lower 
world,  he  is  immediately  recognised  by  his  mother,  Anticleia, 
and  from  her  he  receives  valuable  information  regarding  his 
family.  In  the  24th  liook  of  the  Odyssey  we  find  Patroclus, 
Antilochus,  Ajax.  and  Achilles  assembled  together  in  Hades 
in  earnest  conversation.  There  also  Uh'sses  recognises  the 
souls  of  those  whom  he  had  slain. 

iEschylus:  — • 

In  his  Persse  this  poet  pictures  in  Hades  the  soul  of  Darius 
with  thoughts  and  feelings  like  those  which  possessed  him 
while  on  earth.  There  in  his  speeches  to  *'  the  spirits  in 
prison,"  Darius  delights  to  recall  his  earthly  exploits,  and 
of  them  he  has  a  vivid  remembrance, 

Virgil :  — 

B}'  this  poet  iEneas  is  represented  as  making  a  visit  to 
the  unseen  world  where  he  recognises,  and  is  recognised  b}'; 
the  ghosts  he  meets. 


196  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

So])bbcles :  — 

This  great  tragic  poet  distinctly  sets  forth  his  belief  in  the? 
immortality  of  the  soul : 

xaXov  fiot  rouTo  TrowofTYj  d^avtiVc 
<pt,X-fj  fxsT  aoTou  xsiffofiat^  <pt.Xou  fiera^ 
6(TiaT:avooyTjfTa<;'' '.   £-si  TrXeituv  ^povo'S. 
6v  dsc  iiapsa/.ti.!  Tin<i  xario  riuv  eMade. 
exet  yap  asi  xecffo/iat. 
at  TUiil3og^  10  vuricpeiov^  to  xaTa(Txa<prj<s 
oixfjffig  astcppoopog^  6t  Tzoptuoiiai 
izpog  Toog  £;iauTTjg,  ujv  aptdp-ov  ev  vsxpoi^ 
TzXttarov  dzdtxrai   ^spffecpaffd  ahuXorcuvi 
utv  XotaOia  ^yu)  xat  xaxiffra  8rj  paxpui 
xaT£t;it,  Trpiv  poc  pocpav  £^rjxe(v  jSiou. 
eXdouira  ps'^rai  xapr  ev  sX~'.(nv  rpsifu) 
<piXrj  pzv  ij^ti'^  Karp'.^  -pntr(p'.Xrj<g  ds  <roe, 
pjjTSp^  cptXvj  dz  (Tot,  xa(TtyvrjT()v  xapa.      ,      , 

TsXoutf'  apat :    fl,(D<7ty  ui  yag  unai  xecpevot, 
TtaXtppoTov  yap  d'.,u   OKS^atpnuai  riov 
xTavovTcuv  6t  TzaXai  davovreq^ 
xat  /jItjv  TTapsiffiv  6cds:    tpov^ia  de  ^£ip 
(TTa^st  {^urj?.Tji;  ApzO'^,  o!j(5'  s^oj  (J'sye^v  — 

Happy  shall  I  be  to  die  for  doing  this. 

Dear  to  him  I  shall  lie  with  one  who  is  dear  to  me,  how- 
ever illegally  I  may  have  done  those  holy  rites.  In  Hades 
shall  I  have  more  time  to  please  the  dead  than  I  have  here 
to  please  the  living ;  for  there  shall  I  ever  be.  .  .  .  O 
tomb!  O  bridal-chamber!  O  excavated,  ever-guarding 
home!     whither  I  go  to  join  my  kindred  dead  of  whom  the 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   197 

greatest  number  b}^  untimely  death  Prosephone  has  re- 
ceived :  of  whom  the  last  and  least  in  age,  I  go  forth  before 
my  allotted  time  of  life  expires.  But,  yet,  boldly  I  go 
nourished  by  the  hope  of  being  dear  to  thee,  my  father, 
doul)l3-  dear  to  thee,  my  mother,  and  dear  to  thee  beloved 
brother."     .     . 

"  One  after  another  curses  will  arise.  Those  lying  under 
the  ground  continue  to  live.  For  of  their  murderers  those 
iong  dead  drain  the  blood  as  a  returning  wave  of  punish- 
ment. And  they  are  nigh  at  hand.  But  the  murderous 
hand  drops  in  blood  its  offering  to  the  god  of  destruction ; 
nor  have  I  fault  to  find  at  this." 

(Antigone,  72-77;   890-900.     Electra,  1418-1423). 

Druidism :  — 

With  the  Druids  the  doctrine  of  the  immortality  of  the 
soul  was  a  fundamental  tenet :  "  Les  druides,  qui  etaient  les 
pretresdes  Gaulois  et  de  Bretons,  professaient  1'  immortalite 
de  r  ame  et  la  justice  divine,  avec  une  elevation  de  doctrine 
que  les  anciens  out  admiree.  Leur  religion  avait  des  en- 
seignements  pour  le  peuple,  des  chatiments  pour  le  crime, 
des  institutions  d'  ordre  et  de  paix.  —  The  Druids,  who  were 
the  priests  of  the  Gauls  and  Britons,  believed  in  the  imraor- 
talit}-  of  the  soul  and  in  divine  justice.  Such  was  the  moral 
purity  of  their  doctrine,  that  the  ancients  admired  it.  In 
their  system  of  religion  there  were  among  other  regulations — 
instruction  for  the  people,  punishment  for  crime,  and  insti- 
tutions of  peace  and  order."  (Moke:  Ilistoire  de  la  Bel- 
gique).  If  we  accept  the  testimony  of  Pomponius  Mela, 
which  is  confirmed  by  Valerius  Maximus  and  Strabo,  the 
cause  of  the  prominence  of  this  doctrine  among  the  Druids, 
was  that  the  people  might  be  courageous  and  daring  in  battle. 


198  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

Northern  Nations :  — 

Among  the  northern  nations  the  doctrine  of  the  immortal- 
ity of  the  soul  was  generally  believed.  This  is  affirmed  by 
Caesar,  Diodorus  Siculus,  and  Lucan. 

Eastern  Nations:  — ■ 

With  the  eastern  nations  the  soul's  immortal  nature  was 
generally  accepted,  either  with  or  without  metempsychosis. 
"I  myself  never  was  not,  nor  thou,  nor  all  the  princes  of 
the  earth ;  nor  shall  we  ever  hereafter  cease  to  bo.  As  the 
soul  in  this  mortal  frame  findeth  infancy,  youtli,  and  old 
age;  so  in  some  future  time,  will  it  find  the  like.  The  soul 
is  not  a  thing  of  which  a  man  may  say,  it  hath  been,  it  is 
about  to  be,  or  is  to  be  hereafter ;  for  it  is  a  thing  without 
birth;  it  is  ancient,  constant,  and  eternal,  and  is  not  to  be 
destroyed  in  this  its  mortal  frame." 

(Dialogues  of  Kreeshna  and  Arjoon). 

"Those  whose  conduct  has  been  good  will  quickl}-  obtain 
some  good  birth  after  death,  the  birth  of  a  Brahman  or  a 
Kshatriya,  or  a  Vaisya.  But  those  whose  conduct  has  been 
evil  will  quickly  attain  an  evil  birth,  the  birth  of  a  dog,  or  a 
hog,  or  a  Kandalia.  Whoever  belonging  to  us  has  departed 
this  life,  him  we  cannot  gain  back,  so  that  we  should  sec 
him  with  our  eyes.  Having  shaken  off  the  body  I  obtain 
self-made  and  satisfied,  the  uncreated  world  of  Brahman." 

(Khandogya-Upanished). 

Islamism: — 

With  the  Mohammedans  the  immortality  of  the  soul  is  a 
central  doctrine. 

Sayings  of   Celebrated  Persons :  — 

When  Cyrus  was  dying  he  spoke  thus  to  his  son:  "Do 
not  think,  my  belovod  son,  that  when  I  am  departed  I  shall 


A  Philosophical  In(/nir>/  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   199 

be  110  more.  Wlulc  I  liave  IjL-en  willi  you,  3011  have  never 
at  any  time  seen  m}'  soul ;  you  have  known  it  only  from  its 
works.  Thus  continue  to  believe  that  my  soul  shall  con- 
tinue to  exist  even  when  you  do  not  see  me.  I  have  never 
for  a  moment  been  able  to  believe  that  souls  which  have 
lived  in  bodies,  can,  on  their  leaving  the  bodies,  cease  to 
exist.  Sleep  is  the  image  of  death,  and  in  sleep  men  are 
wont  to  become  prophetic.  From  this  we  may  imagine 
what  the  soul  shall  be,  after  having  been  freed  from  the  fet- 
ters of  the  body."  Said  Scipio_  a  little  before  his  death: 
"I  do  not,  as  many  have  done,  grieve  that  I  have  lived ; 
for  I  have  not  lived  in  vain.  From  this  life  I  depart  as  if 
from  a  hospital  rather  than  a  home.  O  glorious  da}- ! 
when  I  shall  set  out  for  the  assemblage  and  council  of 
divine  minds!  I  go  not  only  to  those  of  whom  I  have 
spoken,  but  also  to  Cato  than  whom  no  better  man  was 
ever  born.  It  comforts  me  to  think  that  I  am  fast  approach- 
ing him."  And  said  Cicero,  writing  on  his  prospective 
death:  '"QuiAj  quidem  mihi  tarn  jucunda  est  ut,  quo  pro- 
prius  ad  mortem  aecedam,  quasi  terrain  videre  videar  ali- 
quandoque  in  portum  ex  longa  navigatione  esse  venturus  — 
What  seems  the  most  comforting  to  me  is  the  fact  that  as  I 
approach  the  time  of  m}^  death,  I  seem  to  come  in  sight  of 
land  as  it  were,  and  at  times  as  if  from  a  long  voyage  to  be 
entering  into  port." 

Says  Darwin:  "With  respect  to  iinmortalit}',  nothing 
shows  me  so  clearly  how  strong  and  almost  instinctive  a 
belief  it  is,  as  the  consideration  of  the  view  now  held  by 
most  physicists,  namel}',  that  the  sun  with  all  the  planets 
will  in  time  grow  too  cold  for  life.     Believmg  as  I  do  that 


200  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

mail  in  the  distant  future  will  be  a  fur  more  perfect  creature 
than  he  now  is,  it  is  an  intolerable  thought  that  he  and  all 
other  sentient  beings  are  doomed  to  complete  annihilation 
after  such  long-continued  progress.  To  those  who  fully 
admit  the  immortality  of  the  soul,  the  destruction  of  our 
world  will  not  appear  so  dreadful.  But  then  doubt  arises, 
and  I  for  one  must  be  content  to  remain  an  Agnostic." 

(Life  and  Letters,  I,  282). 
It  is  the  constant  and  universal  experience  of  all  learned 
men,  that  scholarship  tends  to  increase  much  more  rapidly 
the  sphere  of  the  unknown  than  that  of  the  known.  It  is 
more  especially  among  the  wise  and  great  that  we  hear  the 
confession, —  "  I  must  be  content  to  remain  an  Agnostic." 
The  truly  learned  are  much  more  wont  to  say  "I  do  not 
know  "  than  "  I  am  certain."  Says  Socrates:  "  And  now 
we  depart,  you  to  life,  I  to  death  ;  but  who  shall  be  the  bet- 
ter off,  God  alone  knows. —  A/./.a  ya/)  r^ori  ujfjfji  a-'.£>a'.^  £;j.i)'.  ;j.z-y 
a7Zi}0a./<iuiJ.t'^o) ,  y/jt;>  Ijz  [j'.axTDii.v^o'.^.  oTZoztpo'.  'J  r^u.iuv  spyir/rat 
£— '  au.z'.'/ir/  —txLyijji.,  a/yr^Xif^  rza.^Ti  rz/.r^y  tj  to)  fho)." 

(Apology  XXXIII.) 
Philosophy  teaches  us  to  hope,  though  it  can  give  us  no 
certainty,  that  the  longings  of  the  soul  here,  must  ];e  pro- 
phetic of  their  fulfilment  elsewhere,  since  here  they  are  not 
fulfilled.  It  teaches  us  that  the  capacity  and  power  of  the 
soul  are  unlimited,  and  that  on  earth  it  scarcely  tastes  the 
pleasure  it  is  capable  of  enjoying,  and  hardly  begins  to  do 
what  it  has  power  of  accomplishing.  The  nature- of  the 
soul, —  its  power,  its  capacit}',  its  longings,  all  serve  the 
student  of  philosophy  as  arguments  in  proof  of  the  doctrine 
that  though  the  body  die,  the  soul  shall  live  in  perpetual 


A  Philosophical  Inqninj  into  the  Prineiples  of  Jieliyion.  201 

30ulh.  To  these  reasons  given  for  the  soul's  imuioital 
nature,  are  added  by  many  writers  the  quite  general  belief 
that  a  future  life  is  necessary  as  the  condition  of  reward- 
in"!;  tlie  good  and  punishing  the  evil ;  but  on  this  last  reason 
for  the  soul's  immortal  nature,  I  m^'self  can  lay  no  force. 
On  the  contrary,  I  think  it  not  only  false  but  also  subver- 
sive of  true  morals,  to  teach  or  believe  that  the  iniquitous 
man  may  be  blessed  in  his  iniquity  ;  and  that,  enjoying  the 
fruits  of  his  wrong  doing,  he  may  go  unpunished  until  his 
entrance  into  the  unseen  world.  So  subversive  of  morals  is 
this  doctrine  commonly  taught  in  pulpits,  that  I  think  to 
teach  it  in  any  land,  should  be  a  grave  crime.  Few  are 
they  who  will  postpone  desirable  pleasures  to  the  time  of 
their  possession  in  a  world  of  sliadows,  rather  than  now  in  a 
world  of  whose  substantial  existence  none  can  doubt. 
When  rightly  considered  the  Cliristian  doctrine  that  defers 
punishment  and  reward  to  a  far-off  judgment  day,  is  found 
inconsistent  with  otlicr  Christian  (hxlrine;  its  suicidal 
nature  is  also  evident.  Wiio  but  God  reigns  in  this  other 
world  ?  who  but  God  reigns  in  the  world  which  jiow  is  ?  And 
if  tlie  same  and  one  God  rules  the  both  worlds,  why  can  one 
system  of  laws  obtain  in  one  world  and  a  different  S3-stem 
in  anotlicr?  To  teach  or  believe  tliis,  would  be  preposterous. 
The  truth  is  the  soul  that  sinneth,  it  shall  die.  If  it  sins 
much,  it  shall  die  much  ;  if  it  sins  little,  it  shall  die  little. 
No  living  being  can  jiossil)]y  do  a  good  act  or  a  bad  one, 
witliout  receiving  liis  reward.  To  tlie  peison  who  cannot 
believe  this,  that  every  evil  act  has  in  this  world  its  evil 
result,  whether  physical  or  spiiitual,  I  would  sa}-  stud}-  the 
laws  of  your  being.  ,  If  such  person  should  answer  that  he 


202  Essa>/s  oh  God  and   Man, 

1ms,  I  would  say  "the  fact  that  you  do  not  believe  this,  is 
conclusive  proof  of  3'our  ignorance  of  those  laws ;  there- 
fore, stud}'  them  more."  Moreover,  we  should  not  forget 
that  a  passive  punishment  is  no  less  a  punishment  than  an 
active  one.  Whether  we  know  it  or  not,  it  is  certain  that 
deprivation  of  any  pleasure  is  partial  death.  Deprived  of 
one  sense,  one  mode  of  consciousness,  man  is  partly  dead ; 
deprived  of  all  the  senses,  all  modes  of  consciousness,  man 
is  wholly  dead.  If  man's  own  act  has  brought  upon  him 
the  loss,  or  the  inability  to  appreciate,  any  pleasurable  sen- 
sation, such  loss  or  inability  is  clearly  the  natural  result  of 
a  violation  of  law.  A  man  fails  to  cultivate  his  sense  of 
harmony,  color,  order,  or  devotion  ;  he  finally  wakes  up  to 
the  consciousness  that  to  all  these  sensations  he  is  dead. 
He  that  pra3's  much,  in  this  sense  lives  much  ;  he  that  prays 
little,  in  this  sense  lives  little;  he  that  prays  not  at  all,  in 
this  sense  is  dead.  Such  is  the  natural  punishment  of  his 
transgression.  Is  not  such  a  soul,  therefore,  punished  even 
though  of  such  punishment  unconscious?  To  this  question 
no  thoughtful  mind  can  answer  other  than  affirmatively. 
The  harvest  is  no  more  a  natural  result  of  sowing  and  cul- 
tivating, than  are  punishment  and  reward  the  natural 
results  of  our  own  doing.  Were  this  truth  taught  a  great 
change  would  come  over  human  conduct.  He  who  fears 
,  not  a  hell  located  in  some  shadowy  realm,  can  but  have  a 
horror  of  the  same  when  fixed  in  this  world  as  a  certain  con- 
sequent of  wrong  doing.  I,  therefore,  do  not  believe  that 
a  future  life  is  necessary  to  reward  the  good  or  to  punish 
the  evil ;  the  future  life,  whatever  it  may  be,  will  have  its 
own  rewards  and  punishments,  as  has  also  this.     As  there 


^1  Philosopliiral  liti/nir;/  into  (he  Priiu'ipJe^  of  lielifjion.    203 

is  but  one  God,  we  may  lie  certain  that  wbetlier  in  one  [jart 
of  his  universe  or  another,  causes  have  similar  relations  to 
their  effects.  I  do  not  think,  therefore,  that  there  arc  any 
valid  reasons  in  proof  of  a  future  life,  in  the  doctrine  which 
teaches  such  life  to  be  necessary  for  rewarding  the  good 
and  i)unisliing  the  evil. 

c:  the    presumption  that  mind  is  not  a 
:mere  :\iode  nor  result  of  material 

ACTION : 

Aristotle  says : 

^^  (Pa/zoiiv  or;  to  yez/coy  zoiourov  /ibv  6'.()v  to  ysy^ujii^'jov^  no 
//iVTor  TO  auTo  ^i,  o'jiT  £>  T(p  ap'.O'iw  aXXa  stdei,  6tov  ev  twj?  (poTi- 
y.o'.'i:    a.'df)ui~()^  yan  a/df>u)Z()v  yv/'/d^  w>  fvq  zi  Tzapa  tpotsv^  y-'y'^tra:, 

6ufj  iT.-itq  r^:i.:(r/iry  —  It  is  evident  that  what  is  begotten  is 
like  that  which  begets,  not  indeed  the  same,  nor  is  it  one 
in  number,  but  in  kind,  as  in  phvsical  things:  man  begets 
man,  and  nothing  contrar}'  to  the  nature  of  the  thing  be- 
getting is  begotten;  the  horse  cannot  beget  the  donkey'." 

(Meta.  VI,  8,  8). 
This  law  is  universally  accepted  as  expressing  a  general 
truth ;  nor  is  it  in  conflict  with  any  law  of  Evolution.  The 
latter  has  reference  only  to  infinitesimal  variations  in  the 
same  nature  or  organism,  and  the  fact  that  these  variations 
may  and  do  receive  in  descent  constant  increments 
and  finally  result  in  new  orders,  classes,  or  even  genera. 
But  no  Evolutionist  will  admit  that  out  of  one  organism 
there  may  be  evolved  another  which  differs  in  nature  from 
the  producing  or  evolving  orLianism.  This  law  being  uni- 
versally admitted  as  ex[iressing  a  general  truth,  it  seems  to 


204  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

us  one  might  reasonably  hold  that  in  it  we  have  conclusive 
proof  that  so-called  mind  cannot  be  a  result  nor  a  mode  of 
so-called  matter ;  but  it  does  not  follow  from  this  law  that 
mind  and  matter  are  not  different  sides  of  the  same  thing, 
different  manifestations  or  phenomena  of  the  same  essence. 
The  admission  of  the  truth  of  this  law,  does  not,  therefore, 
preclude  us  from  holding  that  both  mind  and  matter  are 
modes  or  results  of  the  same  and  One  Universal  Essence. 
There  are  many  philosophers  who  hold  that  matter  and  mind 
are  essentiall}''  different ;  there  are  not  less  but  probably 
many  more  who  hold  that  the  essences  of  matter  and  mind 
are  one.  The  former  are  called  dualists  ;  the  latter,  monists. 
A  monist  may  be  either  materialistic  or  spiritualistic ;  the 
latter  believing  that  the  essences  of  all  things  are  mind,  the 
former  believing  that  the  essences  of  all  things  are  matter. 
The  reasons  given  for  dualism  are  to  my  mind  very  unsatis- 
factory, the  reasons  given  for  monism  are  quite  convincing. 
That  the  principles  of  monism  are  laying  hold  of  the  world 
of  thought,  and  that  they  have  on  their  side  the  weight  of 
philosophic  reason,  I  mj'self  have  no  dou'.)t  whatever.  In 
accepting  dualism  a  man  may  find  an  escape  from  a  few  dif- 
ficulties which  follow  from  the  principles  of  monism  ;  but 
the  new  difficulties  which  arise  will  be  incom))arably  more 
than  those  he  escapes.  Philosophical  researches  lead  us  to 
unity  in  all  directions,  and  not  less  to  unity  in  the  substance, 
than  in  the  cause,  of  the  universes  of  so-called  mind  and 
matter.  Says  Maxwell:  "  The  total  energy  of  an}'  bodv  or 
system  of  bodies  is  a  quantity  which  can  neither  be  increased 
nor  diminished  l)y  any  mutual  action  of  such  bodies,  though 
it  may  be  transformed  into  any  one  of  the  forms  of  whicli 


A  Philosophicdl  Inqnir>i  into  tlte  Priariijh's  oj   Religion.   205 

energy  is  susceptible."  Says  Iliixicy:  '"Tlie  imesligatiou 
of  the  plunoniena  of  life  iu  general  shows  that  tlic  physical 
and  chemical  changes  which  take  place  in  the  living  body 
are  of  the  same  order  as  those  which  take  place  out  of  it; 
and  that  whatever  energy  is  exerted  in  producing  such  phe- 
nomena, is  derived  from  the  common  stock  of  energy  in  the 
universe."  Says  Spencer:  "All  material  substances  are 
divisible  into  so-called  elementary  substances,  composed  of 
molecular  particles  of  the  same  nature  as  themselves  ;  but 
tlicse  molecular  particles  are  complicated  structures  consist- 
ing of  congregations  of  truly  elementary  atoms  identical  in 
nature  and  differing  only  in  position,  arrangement,  motion, 
etc.,  and  the  molecules  of  clieniical  atoms  arc  produced  fr(jm 
the  true  or  ph^^sical  atoms  1)}^  [)rocesses  of  evoUuion  under 
conditions  which  chemistry  has  not  been  able  yet  to  produce." 
Says  Iluxle}',  s[)eaking  of  the  same  thing:  "  I  cannot  dis- 
cover that  any  contemporary  physicist  or  chemist  believes  in 
the  real  indivisibility  of  the  atoms.  Is  it  not  probable —  the 
evolution  of  our  elements  from  a  primary  undifferentiated 
form  of  matter?  If  all  kinds  of  matter  are  modifications  of 
one  kind,  and  if  all  modes  of  motion  are  derived  from  the 
same  energy,  the  orderly  evolution  of  ph3'sical  nature  out 
of  one  substance  and  one  energ}',  implies  that  the  rules  of 
action  of  that  energy  should  l)e  fixed  and  definite." 

(The  Reign  of  Queen  Victoria,  II,  316). 
A  little  knowledge  may  enable  a  man  to  observe  the  dif- 
ferences between  things;  much  knowledge  enaliles  him  to 
observe  their  similarities  or  sameness.  All  the  various  forms 
of  the  so-called  organic  and  inorganic  worlds,  are  all  caused 
b}^  the  combinations  of  a  few  atoms;  and  it  i/  pliiiosophical 


206  Essajffi  on  God  and  Man, 

to  believe  that  these  few  atoms  are  but  different  molecules  of 
the  same  one  and  universal  substance,  formed  under  differ- 
ent conditions.  What  La  Place  has  done  for  the  heavenly 
bodies,  what  Lamarch,  Darwin,  and  "Wallace  have  done  for 
plants  and  animals,  it  is  reasonable  to  believe  holds  good 
for  the  origin  of  atoms.  The  discoveries  of  Prout,  Lockyer, 
Carnelly  and  others,  all  point  to  the  genesis  of  the  atoms 
from  a  common  substance.  Dalton,  Boyle,  Graham,  and 
Crookes  are  quite  at  one  in  this  belief. 

Passing  from  this  speculation  we  may  say  that  it  is  cer- 
tain mind  and  matter,  so-called,  must  be  the  same  in  essence 
or  not  the  same.  Suppose  for  argument  sake  they  are  not 
the  same ;  suppose  tlie  natures  of  mind  and  matter  are  es- 
sentially different.  Then  it  must  follow  from  the  universal 
law  already  given,  the  thing  produced  must  in  nature  be  like 
the  thing  producing,  that  mind  cannot  be  a  product  nor 
mode  of  material  or  molecular  action  ;  and  if  it  be  not  a  pro- 
duct nor  mode  of  material  or  molecular  action,  then  it  can- 
not cease  to  be,  on  the  dissolution  of  the  organism  in  which 
it  was  manifest.  That  mind  is  not  a  product  or  mode  of 
material  action  is  quite  generall}'  believed  by  the  vulgar  and 
by  many  scientists.  Prof.  Stokes  is  of  this  opinion.  Says 
he:  "  May  it  not  be  in  a  similar  manner  that  mind  can  only 
proceed  from  that  which  has  mind?"  Under  this  supposi- 
tion mind  may  be  considered,  as  many  of  the  ancients  con- 
sidered it,  an  influx  from  the  Deity  into  the  individual.  Its 
origin  being  divine,  spiritual,  it  would  not  be  in  dependence 
on  the  body.  It,  as  the  tliinking  essence,  the  self-conscious 
monon,  would  simply  use  the  body  as  a  house;  but  on  the 
dissolution  or  destruction  of  this  house,  the  self-conscious 
monon,  being  in  origin  and  nature  different  from  it,  would 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.    207 

continue  to  exist,  though  under  changed  conditions.  Thus, 
under  the  supposition  that  mind  and  mutter  are  in  their 
natures  different,  we  arc  logically  comi)elled  to  admit  that 
upon  the  death  of  the  body  the  soul,  in  some  form  or  other, 
continues  to  exist ;  that  the  spiritual  essence,  the  deathless 
self,  rises  superior  to  death  and  continues  its  endless  life. 
If  mind  and  matter,  therefore,  are  different  in  their  natures, 
the  existence  of  the  soul,  after  the  death  of  the  bod}-,  must 
be  a  consequential  fact.  On  tiie  principles  of  dualism, 
therefore,  we  cannot  think  of  the  soul's  relation  to  the  body 
as  that  of  an  effect  to  its  cause ;  for  we  are  obliged  to  postu- 
late for  the  soul  an  origin  quite  different  from  matter,  and 
a  cause  quite  different  from  molecular  activity.  A  spiritual 
result  must  have  a  spiritual  cause  ;  thinking  mona  must  have 
for  their  cause  a  Thinking  Monon,  and  this  could  be  none 
other  than  God. 

We  have  laid  down  the  self-evident  proposition  that  mind 
and  matter  must  be  the  same  in  nature  or  not  the  same. 
On  the  supposition  that  they  are  not  the  same  in  nature,  we 
have  shown  from  the  principles  of  science  that  mind  must 
continue  to  exist  after  the  death  of  the  body ;  in  other 
words,  that  the  soul  in  some  form  or  other  must  be  immor- 
tal. But  some  one  may  say:  '•  I  do  not  believe  that  matter 
and  mind  are  different  in  nature ;  I  believe  the}'  are  but 
different  sides  of  the  same  thing."  I  answer,  you  are  not 
alone  in  your  opinion  ;  countless  numbers  agree  witli  you. 
Says  C'arl^-le : 

"flatter  were  it  never  so  despicable  is  spirit,  the  mani- 
festation of  spirit:  were  it  never  so  honorable,  can  it  be 
more?  The  thing  visible,  na}',  the  thing  imagined,  the 
thing  in  any  way  conceived  as  visible,  what  is  it  but  a  gar- 


208  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

ment,  a  clothing  of  the  higher,  celestial,  invisible,  unimagin- 
able, formless,  dark  with  excess  of  bright.  All  visible 
things  are  only  emblems  ;  what  thou  seest  is  not  there  on  its 
own  account;  strictly  taken  is  not  there  at  all:  matter 
exists  only  spiritually,  and  to  represent  some  idea  and  body 
it  forth."  Goethe  in  his  "  Faust"  calls  matter  "  the  living 
garment  of  the  Deity"  ;  and  in  one  of  his  shorter  poems 
we  hear  him  saying: 

"No,  such  a  God  my  worship  may  not  win 
Who  lets  the  world  about  his  fingers  spin 
A  thing  extern :  my  God  must  rule  within. 
And  whom  I  own  for  Father,  God,  Creator, 
Hold  nature  in  himself,  himself  in  nature ; 
And  in  his  kindly  arms  embraced,  the  whole 
Doth  live  and  move  b}'  his  i:)ervadingsoul." 
With  similar  belief  speaks  a  great  English  poet: 
"  All  are  but  parts  of  one  stupendous  whole. 
Whose  body  nature  is,  and  God  the  soul , 
That,  changed  through  all,  and  yet  in  all  the  same, 
Great  in  the  earth,  as  in  the  ethereal  frame ; 
Warms  in  the  sun,  refreshes  in  the  breeze, 
Glows  in  tlie  stars  and  blossoms  in  the  trees ; 
Lives  tlirough  all  life,  extends  through  all  extent. 
Spreads  undivided,  operates  unspent; 
Breathes  in  our  soul,  informs  our  mortal  part, 
As  full,  as  perfect,  in  a  hair  as  heart ; 
As  full,  as  perfect,  in  vile  man  that  mourns, 
As  the  rapt  seraph  that  adores  and  burns; 
To  him  no  high,  no  low,  no  great,  no  small ; 
He  fills,  he  bounds,  connects,  and  equals  all." 

(Pope). 


A  Phil'isojihical  hiqnii->i  into  tlic  /'ri)ii'ij)les  of  Religion.   209 

The  thought  so  beautifully  here  expressed  is  not  original 
with  these  poets;  it  has  l>een  taught  and  believed,  it  is 
to-day  taught  and  believeil,  l)y  the  most  profound  philoso- 
phers.    We  will,  therefore,  next  suppose  that, — 

Mind  and  Matter  have  t"ie  Same  Nature  or  Essence. 

That  mind  and  matter  have  the  same  essence,  that  they 
arc  the  same  in  nature,  it  is  impossible  for  us  to  dis[)rove ; 
for  "  we  are  compelled  to  postulate  a  substance  of  mind 
that  is  affected,  before  we  can  think  of  its  affections :  we 
can  form  no  notion  of  a  substance  of  mind  absolutely- 
divested  of  attributes  connoted  b}'  the  word   substance." 

(Spencer:  Psy.  1,  G26). 

Thus  we  express  our  knowledge  of  mind  in  terms  of  mat- 
ter, and  our  knowledge  of  matter  in  terms  of  mind.  Mat- 
ter and  mind,  to  say  the  least,  are  twin  sisters.  It  appears 
to  us  that  the  weight  of  evidence  is  on  the  side  of  those  who 
hold  that  matter  and  mind  have  one  common,  but  unknown, 
essence ;  that  they  are  but  different  phenomena  of  the 
same  thing:  "A'/:  y.ada~-p  vt  i'>  -h'-hv^t;'^  -y^'j  i)-ir/.t'.i).i-^rf-^ 
non-.a-j  z'a'/.'/.a  td'.^  -ad;Tr^  a'jr?j9  yz^'^cum^.  —  LikcAvise  are 
there  some  who  affirm  that  all  things  have  the  same  one 
underlying  substance,  and  explain  their  apparent  differ- 
ences by  the  changes  of  this  om;  sul)3tance."  (Aris- 
totle: Met.  1,4,  10).  But  with  this  supposition,  which  is 
probabU'  the  true  one,  the  question  arises  what  shall  wo  call 
this  substance  which  is  the  common  essence  of  so-called 
mind  and  matter.  From  the  general  principle  of  science 
spoken  of,  we  are  debarred  from  calling  thi3  common 
essence,  so-called  matter ;  for  the  thing  produced  must  be 
in  nature  like  the  thing  producing  it.     But  the  attrilnites  of 

11 


210  Essays  on  God  <(7id  Man, 

miiul,  thought,  will,  etc,  are  not  attributes  of  matter 
so-called ;  and,  therefore,  it  is  certain  that  if  matter  and 
mind  have  a  common  essence,  this  common  essence  cannot 
be  so-called  matter.  "  That  a  nnit  of  feeling  has  nothing 
in  common  with  a  unit  of  motion,  becomes  more  than  ever 
manifest  when  we  bring  the  two  into  juxtaposition." 
(Spencer).  It  must  be  l)orne  in  mind  that  we  use  the  term, 
matter,  as  it  is  commonly  used,  in  contradistinction  from 
mind.  "We  would  not  say  that  the  natural  forces  of  nature 
cannot  produce  mind,  will,  etc.  ;  but  we  do  insist  that 
science  forbids  us  to  think  of  matter  so-called  as  a  possible 
cause  of  the  peculiar  phenomena  of  mind.  The  term,  mat- 
ter, expresses  what  may  be  the  object  of  knowledge  ;  should 
we  use  it  to  express  what  maj-  be  the  subject  of  knowledge, 
we  should  be  guilty  of  using  words  without  thought,  or  of 
logical  suicide.  Whatever  the  common  essence  of  so-called 
matter  and  mind  may  be,  we  cannot  reasonably  hold  that 
tills  common  essence  is  so-called  matter.  If  we  hold  that 
the  common  essence  of  so-called  matter  and  mind  is 
so-called  spirit,  our  position  is  certainly  much  less  objection- 
able. Sa3's  Mr.  Wallace:  "It  does  not  seem  improbable 
that  all  force  may  be  will  force,  and  thus  that  the  whole 
universe  is  not  merely  dependent  on,  but  actually  is,  the 
will  of  higher  intelligences."  Says  Spencer:  "It  seems 
easier  to  translate  so-called  matter  into  so-called  spirit  than 
to  translate  so-called  spirit  into  so-called  matter." 

(Psy.  I,   ](31). 

That  the  substance  of  all  things  is  spirit,  is  not  a  modern 

supposition,  but  one  thousands  of  years  old:   '■'■  Xou'y  or^  rt:; 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principh's  of  Relitjiou.   211 

atriDV      xiiu     XDanjiij      /.a:      -y^^      za^iuxi      -am^<:.  —  Soitie     liOlcl 

tliat  mind  is  indwelling  in  all  things ;  that  as  in  animal 
life,  so  is  it  the  cause  of  all  the  order  and  arrangement 
seen  in  the  universe."  (Aris.  Met.  I,  3,  IG).  Shall 
we  say,  therefore,  that  tlie  common  essence  of  so-called 
matter  and  mind  is  so-calleil  spirit?  Sliould  we  answer,  yes, 
we  involve  ourselves  though  not  in  as  great  difficulties,  yet 
in  similar  ones  to  those  before  mentioned.  The  word,  spirit, 
is  used  to  denote  what  perceives,  thinks,  etc.  ;  not  what  is 
ponderable,  transformable,  sensuous.  We  have  no  sulli- 
cient  warrant  from  our  present  scientific  knowledge  for  say- 
ing that  the  essence  of  so-called  matter  and  mind  is 
so-called  spirit.  How  is  it  possible  to  know  this  when  we 
know  mind  only  in  terms  of  matter,  and  matter  onl}-  in 
terms  of  mind?  How  can  we  say  that  y  is  the  cause  of  x, 
when  we  know  y  only  in  terms  of  x?  How  can  we  sny  that 
X  is  the  cause  of  y,  when  we  know  x  only  in  terms  of  y  ? 
How  can  we  determinately  solve  a  problem  containing  two 
unknown  quantities,  wlien  we  have  only  one  equation  giving 
the  value  of  one  unknown  qnantil}'  in  terms  of  the  other 
unknown  quantity?  Tlie  attempt  to  do  so  would  be  arguinir 
in  a  circle.  "We  can  think  of  matter  only  in  terms  of 
mind,  we  can  tliiiik  of  mind  only  in  terms  of  matter" 
(Spencer).  We  cannot,  therefore,  say  the  common  essence 
of  so-called  mind  and  matter,  is  so-called  spirit.  What 
then,  we  ask,  is  this  essence  which  must  be  common  to 
both?  It  is  certain  that  if  this  essence  be  neither  so-called 
matter  nor  so-called  mind,  whatever  it  may  be  it  must  be 
unknown  to  us.  This  Unknown  Essence  must  be  the  Sub- 
ject, the  Cause  of  all  things.     In  this  Unknown  Substance 


212  Essays  on  God  and  3/an, 

must  so-called  matter  and  mind  liave  their  common  unity, 
tlicir  true  being  or  essence;  and  in  it  must  subject  and 
object  be  united.  What  tlien  shall  we  call  this  Essence 
which  is  common  to  both  mind  and  matter  so-called?  We 
answer,  since  it  can  be  neither  so-called  matter  nor 
so-called  mind,  and  yet  must  be  the  true  essence  of  all 
things ;  we  may  call  it  the  Ultimate  Reality,  the  Universal 
Substance.  To  this  Ultimate  Reality  must  be  referred  all 
the  phenomena  of  mind  and  matter ;  in  it  must  all  exist- 
ences blend  and  have  their  true  root  and  being.  It  must  be 
the  womb  of  all  the  forces  in  the  universe;  it  must  be  the 
Thinking  Monon,  the  Universal  Intelligence,  the  Universal 
Will.  "  When  thus  reflecting,"  says  Darwin,  "  I  feel  com- 
pelled to  look  to  a  First  Cause  having  an  intelligent  mind 
in  some  degree  analogous  to  that  of  man."  In  this 
universal  Monon,  the  body  and  soul  of  the  universe  must  be 
united.  Here  and  here  only  can  we  find  the  explanation  of 
so-called  mind  and  so-called  matter,  and  more  than  all,  of 
man's  will.  Granting  a  common  essence  to  mind  and  mat- 
ter, it  does  not  therefore  follow  that  so-called  mind  and 
matter  are  endowed  with  like  possibilities.  Granting  they 
are  twin  sisters,  and  perhaps,  even  different  sides  of  the 
same  thing ;  yet  it  does  not  therefore  follow  that  they  have 
like  potentialities.  It  may  be  true  that  mind  cannot  exist 
apart  from  matter,  since  it  takes  the  two,  as  it  were,  to 
make  one,  and  since  in  the  universal  Monon  matter  and  mind 
must  exist  in  unity ;  but  it  does  not  therefore  follow  that 
mind  must  cease  to  be  on  the  death  of  the  body ;  for  it 
might  clothe  itself  with  a  higher  form  of  matter  invisible  and 
unknown  to  us.     Being  compelled  to  postulate  as  the  cause 


A  Philosophical  Inquiri/  into  the  Principles  of  Jielifjion.   213 

and  true  essence  of  mind  and  matter  a  Universal  Substance 
where  matter  and  mind  are  united,  it  is  most  reasonable  to 
see  in  our  minds  and  bodies  manifestations  of  that  Original 
Essence.  As  the  ori<^inal  Cause  or  P^ssence  of  so-called 
mind  and  matter  must  be  eternal,  so  must  so-called  mind 
l)e  eternal ;  as  the  Original  Cause  or  Essence  of  so- 
called  matter  must  be  eternal,  so  must  matter  be  eternal, 
indestructible,  persistent.  As  the  Original  Cause  or 
Essence  of  so-called  mind  and  matter  must  be  Thought, 
a  Self-Conscious  Monon,  so  should  our  mona,  our  self- 
consciousnesses,  our  souls,  be  deathless.  We  conclude, 
therefore,  that  granting  a  common  essence  to  so-called  mind 
and  matter,  it  is  most  reasonal)le  to  affirm,  and  believe  in, 
the  immortality  of  the  soul.  Having  shown  that  our  mona, 
our  thinking  essences,  should  continue  to  exist  after  the 
death  of  the  bod}-,  it  is  reasonable  to  believe  that  we  shall 
continue  to  exist  as  we  now  are,  individual  mona,  separate 
intelligences.  For  since  we  are  now  separate  intelligences, 
it  lies  on  liim  who  affirms  that  on  the  death  of  our  bodies  we 
shall  be  merged  or  sinli  into  the  Universal  Essence,  to  prove 
it.  Since  he  cannot  do  this,  we  conclude  that  on  the  sup- 
position of  a  common  essence  for  so-called  mind  and  matter, 
what  we  now  are  we  shall  continue  to  be,  separate  individu- 
alities, deathless  souls. 

d  :    THE  FACT  OF  RELIGION  AND  HUMAN    FAITH 
IN  IT : 

Nothing  is  better  known  than  that  men  after  they  have 
reached  a  certain  degree  of  mental  attainment,  however 
much  they  may  differ  in  desires,   customs,  tendencies,  ex- 


214  Essays  on  God  cdhI  Man^ 

pectations,  powers,  etc.,  have  one  thing  in  common,  — that 
one  thing  is  religion ;  and  of  this  one  common  possession  of 
universal  man  tlie  hope  of  immortality  is  elementaiy.  There 
are,  of  course,  men  who  are  almorraal ;  but  however  great 
they  may  he,  they  move  in  orbits  unUke  the  orbits  of  hu- 
manity in  general.  Such  was  Schelling  and  those  of  his 
school,  of  whom  Madame  de  Stael  says:  "The  school  of 
Schelling  supposes  that  the  individual  perishes  in  us  at  death  ; 
but  that  the  inward  qualities  re-enter  into  the  grand  whole 
of  the  eternal  creation.  This  immortality  has  a  terrible  re- 
semblance to  death." 

The  fact  of  religion  in  the  world  none  will  doubt;  nor 
will  any  scientific  scholar  doubt  that  its  origin  has  been,  and 
is,  natural,  a  product  of  the  reason,  the  natural  result  of  a 
desire  to  know  the  Author  and  Soul  of  the  universe,  to  live 
in  accord  with  his  will,  and  to  be  prepared  for  a  hoped-for 
future  life.  Among  all  nations,  kindreds,  and  tongues  ;  ex- 
isting under  every  form  of  government ;  stronger  than  all  po- 
litical parties  ;  older  than  organized  societ}^ ;  permeating  all 
social  life  ;  man's  solace  in  life  and  hiding-place  in  death, — 
religion,  the  one  common  bond  which  unites  humanity  to 
God,  may  languish,  l)ut,  vyhile  the  human  race  endures,  can 
never  die.     Says  Aristotle :  — 

ovrw? :  r^TTov  T£  yap  (fo^ou'^Tai  ro  Tiadziv  rt  Tzapw^oiJAv^  utto  rwv 
Toco'jTcDv,  sav  dsunHaiii.o'^a,  v();j.t!^uj(nv  sivai  rtr^  apynvra  /.at  (ppo'^ri- 
^cjy  rwy  0sojy^  xa:  e~'.^()u).tO(io(T>.'^  r^zmv  (jj^;  rru/j.fj.ayoO'f  zyu'/ri  /.at 
TDO^  B'ZdU'i.  .  .  -  fJ-pt  /y.£v  ouv  [spur/  —tptrzio^  a'^ayxatov 
Xsyev/ :  rj  yap  spoups/  oj-i  ra  /.aOtrsrara  dtafola/.rtoy.^  75  vj<;  e-t  ro 
psyaXoTpfKZdTepov  r,(j)<i  ij   w^,'  £~t  ro  ra-et-^or^pn-y.      'lira,'  //£>   ou> 


A  Philosophical  Inqnirii  into  (lie  Principles  of  Religion.  215 

).zyu)ii.v>  ii}^  lit',  ra  /.adiUTo-a  <)'.ii.<s'J/.'i.m'.'/^  lofir^Tufi.z'y  acfuftfia^  tx. 
fit)/  zii'j  ip.xa'.D'j  ?.£yi>]/zt^  (ir:  T'/  rzar/ita  eOr/  -ana  -air:  -ai>a3afyt'.\i 
aS'.xiiy  -fTZ'.,  y.a'.  or;  r«  ii.a./ri'.a.  -a-^za  zm^  a\/Ofnozii'.^  -fiu/rzazzz'. 
xara  za  zazn'.a  —n'.t'.nda'.  zii.'i  (hjfi'.a'i,  y.at  or:  rwv  -jnuzw^ 
o'.y.'.Xir^zio-^  za^  ~it).-'.i  y.a'.  zii'.'i  Btn'.'i  loirjtjan.vxo-^  za  Itpa 
;j.a/.:nza  Dti  d'.a;i£/t:'^  rai"  ~tf)i  rcj*,""  f^couii  srz'./j.z/.z'.ax.  —  It  is 
very  necessar}'  that  the  ruler  shoiikl  appear  zealous  for 
those  things  concerning  God  ;  for  the  subjects  will  say  less 
about  the  evils  of  unjust  opi)ression,  if  they  believe  the  ruler 
is  God-fearing,  and  studious  of  the  divine  service ;  and  they 
are  less  likely  to  lay  plots  for  his  overthrow,  if  they  suppose 
he  has,  as  it  were,  God  for  au  ally.  .  .  .  It  is  neces- 
sary to  touch  the  subject  of  religious  rites  with  the 
greatest  care :  for  we  shall  say  that  the  ancient  practices 
must  be  preserved,  that  their  splendor  must  be  increased, 
or  that  the  expense  of  the  public  worship  must  be  some- 
what curtailed.  "Whenever,  therefore,  we  would  say  that 
it  is  necessary  to  preserve  the  established  customs,  we  shall 
find  hell)  for  so  doing  in  the  sense  of  justice,  saying  that  of 
all  things  it  is  most  unjust  to  trample  under  foot  the  customs 
of  our  fore-fathers,  and  that  all  the  divine  oracles  direct 
men  to  offer  sacrifices  after  the  customs  of  their  fathers,  and 
that  it  is  necessary  to  peri)etuate  the  service  of  God  espec- 
ially after  the  manner  of  those  who  first  founded  the  city, 
and  established  its  religious  worship." 

(Ad  Alexandrum,  III,  n.   I  ;  De  Republica,  V,  II,  25). 

None  but  an  incompetent  mind  will  refer  the  religions  of 

the  world  to  priestcraft.     It  is  true  that  ver}'^  many  of  the 

forms,  ceremonies,  polities,  dogmas,  differences,  etc.,  are 

undoubtedly  the  work  of  priests  or  so  called  ministers ;  but 


216  Essays  on  God  and  il/o», 

notwithstanding  all  the  superstitions  and  humbuggerj^  we 
find  in  the  world,  passing  under  the  name  of  religion,  the 
fact  still  remains  that  man  is  a  religious  being,  a  praying 
animal:  '■'■  Ih/ity'-y^ovra'.  3z  rravrr^  rj  du/.  tyjV  rcuv  Htw^  £>- 
vo.'av  y>  B'jT'r/'.iv^  -iiixrayope-joiit'^. —  Success  attends  all  men 
either  through  the  good-will  of  God,  for  which  good 
fortune  we  all  pra}^  or  etc."  (Aristotle:  Ad  Alexandrum, 
III,  29).  It  is  the  possession  of  this  religious  nature 
that  makes  man  a  prey  to  the  superstitious  teachings 
delivered  from  most  of  the  pulpits  of  our  land.  Reli- 
gion being,  as  we  have  said,  universal,  it  would  appear  to  be 
a  natural  product  of  the  reason ;  and  if  so,  it  would  seem 
suicidal  to  discredit  its  primary  utterances.  Says  Cicero : 
"  Ratio  profecta  a  rerum  natura,  et  ad  recte  faciendum  im- 
pellens,  et  delictu  avocans,  non  hinc  denique  incipit  lex  esse 
cum  scripta  est,  sed  turn  cum  orta  :  Orta  autem  simul  est 
cum  mente  divina —Reason,  in  the  very  nature  of  things, 
continually  progressing,  and  impelling  us  to  right  doing  no 
less  than  dissuading  us  from  evil,  is  law  to  us  not  only  when  it 
is  written,  but  as  soon  as  it  arises  ;  for  the  moment  it  arises,  it 
is  with  the  mind  divine."  (DeLegibes).  Says  Plato  :  "It 
is  not  art  which  makes  thee  excel,  but  a  divine  power  which 
moves  thee."  Surely  reason  is  divine,  and  its  divinest  pro- 
duct is  religion.  Says  Carlyle:  "To  the  eye  of  vulgar 
logic,  what  is  man?  An  omniverous  biped  that  wears 
breeches.  To  the  eye  of  pure  reason,  what  is  he?  A  soul, 
a  spirit,  an  a[)parition.  Round  his  mysterious  "  Me  "  there 
lies,  under  all  those  wool-rags,  a  garment  of  flesh  context- 
ured  in  the  loom  of  heaven.  Deep  hidden  is  he  under  that 
strange  garment;  amid  sounds  and  colors  and  forms  as  it 


^1  Philosoijhical   fiiqiiiry  into  the  Princiides  of  Religion .   217 

were  swatlied-in,  and  inextricably  over-shrouded :  yel  it  is 
sky-woven  and  wortliy  of  a  god."  Man  is  indeed  a  wonder- 
ful being  across  whose  mind  there  often  roll  waves  from  an 
unknown  world.  His  ever  active  brain  gives  birth  to  thought 
which  seems  to  say  "  tliou  art  but  the  shadow  of  the  One 
Unknown  Reality." 

"  Lulled  in  the  countless  chambers  of  the  brain, 

Our  thoughts  are  linked  by  many  a  golden  chain  ; 

Awake  but  one,  and  lo,  what  myriads  rise! 

Each  stamps  its  image  as  the  other  Hies." 
Says  Fichte:  "  Besides  God  there  exists  truly  and  in  the 
proper  sense  of  the  word,  nothing  at  all  but  knowledge  ;  and 
this  knowledge  is  the  divine  existence  itself,  absolutely  and 
immediately ;  and  in  so  far  as  we  are  knowledge,  are  we  in 
the  deepest  root  of  our  being  the  divine  Existence  itself." 
Says  Jacobi:  "Man  reveals  God;  for  man  by  his  intelli- 
gence, is  conscious  of  himself  as  a  power  not  only  independ- 
ent of,  but  oi)posed  to,  nature  ;  and  cai)able  of  resisting, 
conquering,  and  controlling  her.  As  man  has  a  living  faith 
in  this  pi)wer  superior  to  nature,  wliich  dwells  in  him,  so  has 
he  a  Ijelief  in  God,  a  feeling  and  exi)erience  of  his  exis- 
tence. Says  Dana:  "  It  is  my  confiding  belief  that  all  law, 
is  law  by  divine  appointment ;  that  all  force  is  the  ever  ac- 
tive divine  will."  Thus  reason  appears  divine  and  worthy 
of  our  confidence ;  and  since  the  greatest  work  of  reason  is 
religion,  it  would  appear  certain  that  the  religious  convic- 
tions of  humanity  cannot  be  wlioUy  unfounded.  Man  turns 
to  God  as  the  flower  turns  to  the  sun.  As  the  flower  cannot 
do  otherwise,  so  neither  can  man.  Man's  knowledge  of 
God  is  not  derived  exclusively  from  so-called  revelations,  or 


218  Essaijs  on  God  (oid  Man, 

bibles  ;  for  these  are  but  the  crystallization  of  ideas  naturally 
revealed  in  the  past.  The  bibles  of  the  world  should  be 
used  as  histories  of  man's  religious  development,  and  as 
evidences  of  his  imperfect  attempts  to  interpret  God's  reve- 
lation of  himself.  But  in  no  case  should  man,  trusting  in 
the  dead  letter  of  scripture,  turn  a  deaf  ear  to  the  present 
and  living  voice  of  God.  God  reveals  himself  by  an  eternal, 
continuous,  and  universal  revelation.  It  is  on  this  ground, 
and  this  ground  only,  that  we  can  give  any  satisfactory  ex- 
planation of  the  fact  of  religion.  God  manifests  himself 
continuous!}^  and  universally ;  but  the  interpretation  of  that 
continuous  and  universal  revelation,  is  everywhere  different, 
everywliere  partly  true,  everywhere  partl}^  false.  The  Uni- 
versal Essence,  the  true  Subject  of  so-called  mind  and  matter, 
is  felt  by  all,  as  the  power  of  gravitation  is  felt  by  all,  not  by 
miracles, —  which  would  be  God  contradicting  himself,  — not 
by  fits  and  starts ;  but  universally,  continuously,  and  natu- 
rally, as  in  all  the  rest  of  the  domain  of  nature.  To  Jew 
and  Christian,  to  Mohammedan  and  Brahmin,  to  Confucian 
and  Buddhist,  is  tliis  revelation  given  ;  but  by  each  is  this 
continuous  and  universal  revelation  differently  interpreted, 
and  by  each  the  claim  is  made  of  having  the  most  perfect 
revelation  of  Him  who  must  forever  remain  unrevealed. 
"While  it  is  certain  that  no  revelation  is  perfect  and  never  can 
be ;  while  it  is  certain  that  all  revelations  are  supplement- 
arv,  — 3'et  it  is  equally  certain  tliat  the  germs  of  all  revela- 
tions are  alike  ;  that  every  where  men  adore,  praise,  supplicate, 
propitiate,  and  everywhere  hope  for  immortal  life.  Being 
forced  to  believe  that  what  is  natural  is  true,  it  appears 
most  reasonable  to  believe  that  every  church-spire,  every 


A  Philosophkal  Inquiry  itdo  th*-  Prlnriples  of  Reli'jion.   219 

tolling  bell,  every  pealing  anthem,  every  sacrificial  act,  all 
our  prayers  and  praise,  and  every  desire  for  a  more  reason- 
able life,  are  but  the  turning  of  the  flower  to  the  sun,  the 
bent  of  the  soul  to  its  God,  the  unmistakable  evidence  that 
the  germs  of  religions  are  true.  It  is  certain  that  nature 
must  be  true.  We  may  have  falsely  interpreted  her;  but 
it  seems  to  us  that  this  is  the  teaching  we  get  from  God's 
universal,  eternal,  continuous,  and  natural  revelation  of 
himself  to  the  listening  heart  of  universal  man.  I  believe 
we  are  not  deceived  in  our  interpretation.  Let  us  go  to  this 
universal,  eternal,  continuous,  and  natural  revelation,  and 
compare ;  let  us  take  from  all  the  wheat,  and  cast  to  the 
swine  the  chaff.  Let  us  listen  to  the  voice  of  God,  to  us,  to 
the  age  in  which  we  live,  and  to  the  country  of  which  we 
form  a  i)art.  Let  us  sec  Him  in  art,  in  science,  in  litera- 
ture, in  music.  Let  us  yield  to  his  touch,  yield  to  his  teach- 
ing in  all  the  varied  forms  of  human  development.  It  is  in 
this  continuous,  universal,  eternal,  and  natural  revelation, 
unless  I  ha .'e  wrongly  interpreted  nature,  that  we  find  the 
highest  evidence  for  the  immortality  of  the  soul.  I  sa}- 
highest  evidence ;  for,  speaking  scientifically,  certainty  con- 
cerning it  we  cannot  have.  Says  Aristotle:  "  Of  all  things 
death  is  the  most  dreaded:  it  is  the  boundary  line;  the 
dead  seem  not  to  be  conscious  of  anything,  either  good  or 
bad.  But  where  duty  calls,  the  true  man  is  dead  to  the 
fear  of  death,  always  preferring  an  honorable  death  to  a  dis- 
honorable life.  —  (Pii^^imnaTDV  (f  6  davaro^i :  -^pw}  yan^  xai 
ou'hv  £rj  no  TzOvsmtc  S(ix£C  hut  ayaOov,  tiurs  xaxov  er^ai. 
Av^ptiai;  (5'  £(TTi  SvffsxTJ.rixro-^  bzn  (po^io'j  tu)v  r.tp'.  Oavarov.  .  , 
A'ai  TO  iiakkuv  dtpsttrdat   Tsdvayai  xaXw;  tj   aiff/pux;  trwOr^vai."  — 


220  Essays  on  God  and  3fan, 

(Niko.  Eth.  Ill,  9,  6;  Virt.  et  Vit.  IV,  4).  But  if  in  tlie 
present  worM  uncertainty  constantly  attends  us,  it  is  not  to 
be  wondered  at  if  it  enters  into  all  our  considerations  in  re- 
gard to  a  future  world.  Nor  will  the  wise  man  permit  in 
any  way  this  conscious  uncertainty  to  lessen  his  love  for  re- 
ligion, or  cool  his  ardor  for  justice  and  truth.  He  believes 
in,  and  properly  aj^preciates,  the  words  of  Socrates  who, 
when  speaking  of  the  noble  man,  says:  "  God  and  the  an- 
gels are  our  allies ;  we  are  their  living  possession.  Injus- 
tice and  violence  with  folly  destroy  the  soul,  righteousness 
and  temperance  with  prudence  preserve  it.  To  a  good  man 
nothing  bad  can  happen  whether  living  or  dying,  nor  will 
his  work  he  forgotten  by  God.  And  no  one  knows  whether 
death  may  not  be  the  highest  good  which  can  possibly  hap- 
pen to  a  good  man ;  for  if,  as  is  believed,  death  is  but  a  mi- 
gration from  one  world  to  another,  then  the  good  man  will 
there  find  righteous  judges,  and  such  companionship  as  will 
more  than  compensate  for  the  pains  of  repeated  dying;  for 
most  desirable  must  life  be  in  such  a  world.  — ^'j;i;j.o./(>'.  o; 

r^liADJ  Ozn'.  Tz  a;i.a  /.a.',  ou.'.ij.tv^i^  ;  ''I'.'-'-'S  '5'  u:)  Z77^,7.a.  Qmrj  /.at 
'Ja'./j.oxo'^.  <I'0^'.i)Z'.  rj!J.a<i  adv/.'.a  '/.at  Ujjiit'i  ii.ito.  (i.c(>it(yjYri^^  (rv)Xz'. 
/j£  >i:7.a'.t)f70'^rj  /.at.  auxfpoao'jr^  //era  (fpo'^r^atv)^.  Oox  errrr^  a/dpc 
ayi/Jhi)  y.a/.iiv  tiootv  ours  !^oj'>t[  (iots  z-.hvjzr^aa./T'.  ;  ito<)t  «;/£- 
).z'~ii.'.  ')~t)  HuDj  ra  tdoto'j  TTpay/xari/.  ;  ini^z  //;>  oyo^j^  rov  Oayarav^ 
(lud  £'.  roy^a-^tt  T(ij  (v^flpu)-(p  — avrwv  p.-yiTZiyj  ov  rotv  a.YoBiuy. 
E'.T  (JO  o;oy  a-(>^rji).r^r;(i.t  zrrz'.j  6  Qd-'jaruq  v>OvA^  tiq  a'/Mr^  tdt.ov 
eupr^fTsi  ro'jq  ujg  aXr^dojg  <5!za^ra?.  .  .  ^'/oj  ;j.z>  yap  -<i).).ay.'.<^ 
zBtXo}  zzOmimv.  zi  raur  euTC,'  a?.r^Or^,  z~zt  e/j.ocye  /.at  auroj  Oa'j~ 
liaffTTj  a/  ztYj  7^1  rh.arp'.Qfj  aorooc." 

(Leges  X,  906;  Apology  XVII,  XXXII,  XXXIII). 
And  now  I  have  finished  the  work  which  with  ureat  reluc- 


.1  Philosophical  Inquinj  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.    221 

tanee  I  undertook.  Willi  :i  caie  for  trulh  ouly  hiive  I  fin- 
ished it.  Great  is  ray  satisfaction  in  tliat  I  liave  done  my 
best  to  throw  light  upon  this  of  all  subjects  the  most  un- 
known ;  great  will  be  my  reward  if,  casting  off  superstition 
and  hurling  the  dark  things  of  religion  to  the  abysmal  dark- 
ness of  the  ages  gone  by,  you  avIio  hear  and  read,  live  for 
the  time  to  come  a  reasonable  life. 

Conscious  of  freedom  ;  permeated  with  noblest  aspirations 
after  a  iiigher  and  Ix'tter  life  ;  linked  together  by  the  golden 
cords  of  common  joys  and  sorrows;  with  forms  of  dear  ones 
lying  in  the  quiet  grave,  and  seemingly  beckoning  us  to  fol- 
low ;  called  as  it  were  by  the  voices  of  those  we  loved,  though 
with  us  never  7nore,  let  us  stand  at  our  post  as  men,  true  to 
man,  true  to  self,  true  to  nature,  true  to  God.  Let  us  live 
the  life  of  reason.  Thus  doing  may  we  reasonably  ho[)e 
that  unto  us  in  due  time  shall  be  opened  the  gates  of  death, 
and  given  immortal  life.  But  let  the  text  of  nature  forever 
rule  our  actions:  "  whatsoever  a  man  soweth,  that  shall  he 
real)." 

"Father  of  all!   in  every  age,  in  every  clime  adored, 

By  saint,  by  savage,  and  by  sage,  Jehovah,  Jove,  or  Lord! 

Thou  Great  First  Cause,  least  understood,  who  all  m}-  sense 

confined, 
To  know  but  this  that  thou  art  good,  and  that  myself  am 

blind. 

Let  not  this  weak  unknowing  hand  presume  thy   bolts  to 

throw, 
And  deal  damnation  round  the  land,  on  each  I  judge  my  foe. 


522  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

What  conscience  dictates  to  be  done,  or  warns  me  not  to  do, 
This,  teach   me  more  than   hell  to  shun,  that,  more  than 
heaven  pursue. 

Save  me  alike  from  foolish  pride,  or  impious  discontent, 
At  auglit  th}^  wisdom  has  denied,  or  aught  thy  goodness  lent. 

Mean  though  I  am,  not  wholly  so  since  quickened  by  thy 

breath, 
O  lead  me  wheresoe'er  I  go,  through  this  day's  life  or  death ! 

To  thee  whose  temple  is  all  space,  whose  altar,  earth,   sea, 

skies, 
One  chorus  let  all  beings  raise !  all  Nature's  incense  rise! 


BOOK  THE  THIRD. 


SURDS  OR  IMAGINARY  QUANTITIES. 


(223) 


"And  I  can  teach  thee,  coz,  to  shame  the  devil, 
By  telling  truth:  tell  truth,  and  shame  the  devil." 

(Shakespere  :   King  Henry  IV). 
A  Ciiaracteristic  "  Surd  "  :  — 

•'The  f^reat theologians  divide  the  Angelic  host  into  three  hier- 
archies, and  these  again  into  nine  choirs,  three  in  each  hierarchy, 
according  to  Dionyslus  the  Areopagite,  in  the  following  order:  — 1. 
Seraphim,  Cherubim,  Thrones.  2.  Dominions,  Virtues,  Powers. 
3.  Princedoms,  Archangels,  Angels.  The  order  of  the  denomina- 
tions is  not  the  same  in  all  authorities,  for  according  to  the  Greek 
formula,  S.  Bernard,  and  the  Legenda  Aurea,  the  Cherubim  pre- 
cede the  Seraphim,  and  in  the  hymn  of  S.  Ambrose  they  have  also 
the  precedence,  "  To  Thee  Cherubim  and  Seraphim  continually  do 
cry,"  &c. ;  but  the  authority  of  Dionysius  seems  to  be  admitted  as 
paramount,  for  according  to  the  Legend  he  was  the  convert  and 
intimate  friend  of  S.  Paul,  who  had  been  transported  to  the  seventh 
heaven,  and  made  him  acquainted  with  all  he  had  there  beheld." 

(Young-Churchman). 
A  Characteristic  Rational  Quantity: — 

"  Self-reverence,  self-knowledge,  self-control. 
These  three  alone  lead  life  to  sovereign  power. 

Yet  not  for  power;  that  of  itself 
Would  come  uncalled  for;  but  to  live  by  rule. 

Acting  the  rule  we  live  by  without  fear. 
And  because  right  is  right  to  follow  right, 
Were  wisdom  in  the  scorn  of  consequence ! ' 

(Tennyson). 


(224) 


BOOK  THE  THIRD. 


IMAGIXAEY  QUAXTITIE8  OR  SURDS. 


A:  THE  ACCEPTED  ORIGIN  OF  EVIL: 

"Ye  are  of  your  father,  the  devil,  and  the  lusts  of  your 
father  ye  will  do.  He  was  a  murderer  from  the  beginning, 
and  abode  not  in  the  truth  because  there  is  no  truth  in  him. 
When  hespeaketh  a  lie,  he  speaketh  of  his  own:  for  he  is  a 
liar  and  the  father  of  it."  (John,  VIII,  44). 

"  For  if  God  spared  not  the  angels  that  sinned,  Ijut  cast 
them  down  to  hell,  and  delivered  them  into  chains  of  dark- 
ness, and  their  damnation  slumbereth  not.     .     .     . 

(II  Peter,  II,  4). 

"And  the  angels  which  kept  not  their  first  estate,  but 
left  their  own  habitation,  he  hath  reserved  in  everlasting 
chains  under  darkness  unto  the  judgment  of  the  great  day." 

(Jude,  0). 

And  there  was  war  in  heaven:  Michael  and  his  angels 
fought  against  the  dragon  ;  and  the  dragon  fought  and  his 
anorels  and  prevaileil  jiot ;  neither  was  their  place  found  an}' 
more  in  heaven.  And  the  great  dragon  was  cast  out,  that 
old  serpent,  called  the  devil,  which  deceiveth  the  whole 
world:  he  was  cast  out  into  hell,  and  his  angels  were  cast 
out  with  him.  (Rev.  XII,  7-9). 

"In  the  mean  time  Iravat,  a  mighty  elcph:mt,  arose,  now 

],")  (225) 


226  Essays  on  God  a)ul  Mo)i^ 

kept  by  the  God  of  thuuder ;  and  as  they  continue  to  churn 
the  ocean  more  than  enough,  that  deadly  poison  issued  from 
its  bed,  burning  like  a  raging  fire,  whose  dreadful  fumes  in 
a  moment  spread  throughout  the  world,  confounding  the 
three  regions  of  the  universe  with  its  mortal  stench ;  until 
Seev,  at  the  word  of  Brahma,  swallowed  the  fatal  drug  to 
save  mankind  ;  which  remaining  in  the  throat  of  that  sover- 
eign Dew  of  magic  form,  from  that  time  he  hath  been  called 
Neel-Kant,  because  his  throat  was  stained  blue.  "When  the 
Asoors  beheld  this  miraculous  deed  they  became  desperate, 
and  the  Amreeta  and  the  goddess  Sree  became  the  source  of 
endless  hatred.  Tlie  Narayan  assumed  the  character  and 
person  of  Mobeene  Maya,  the  power  of  enchantment,  in  a 
female  form  of  wonderful  beauty,  and  stood  before  the 
Asoors ;  whose  minds  being  fascinated  by  her  presence,  and 
deprived  of  reason,  they  seized  tlie  Amreeta,  and  gave  it 
unto  her. 

The  Asoors  now  clothed  themselves  in  costly  armor,  and 
seizing  their  various  weapons,  rush  on  together  to  attack  the 
Soors.  In  the  mean  time  Xarayana,  in  the  female  fcjrm,  liav- 
ing  obtained  the  Amreeta  from  the  hands  of  their  leaders, 
the  hosts  of  Soors,  during  the  tumult  and  confusion  of  the 
Asoors,  drank  of  the  living  water.  And  it  so  fell  out,  that 
wliile  the  Soors  were  quenching  their  thirst  for  immortality, 
Raboo,  an  Asoor,  assumed  the  form  of  a  Soor,  and  began  to 
drink  also,  v  And  the  water  had  but  reached  his  throat,  when 
the  sun  and  moon  in  friendshii)  to  the  Soors,  discovered  the 
deceit;  and  instantly  Narayan  cut  off  his  head,  as  he  was 
drinking,  with  his  splendid  weapon  Chakra,  And  tlie  gigan- 
tic head  of  the  Asoor,  emblem  of  a  mountain's  summit,  be- 


A  Philosophical  In'jiiinf  into  ih<'  Priiirii,!es  of  Religion.   227 

ing  thus  separated  from  his  body  l)y  the  Cliakra's  edge, 
bounded  into  the  heavens  with  a  dreadful  cry,  whilst  his 
ponderous  trunk  fell  cleaving  the  ground  asunder,  and 
shaking  tlie  whole  earth  unto  its  foundation,  with  all  its 
islands,  rocks,  and  forests.  And  from  that  time  the  head  of 
Raboo  resolved  an  eternal  enmity,  and  continueth,  even  un- 
to this  day,  at  times  to  seize  upon  the  sun  and  moon. 

Now  Narayan,  having  quitted  the  female  figure  he  had  as- 
sumed, began  to  disturb  the  Asoors  with  sundry  celestial 
weapons,  and  from  that  instant  a  dreadful  battle  was  com- 
menced, on  the  ocean's  briny  strand,  between  the  Asoors 
and  the  Soors.  Innumeral)le  sharp  and  missile  weapons 
were  hurled  and  thousands  of  piercing  darts  and  buttle- 
axes  fell  on  all  sides.  The  Asoors  vomit  blood  from  the 
wounds  of  the  Chakra,  and  fall  u[)on  the  ground  pierced  bv 
the  sword,  the  spear,  and  spiked-club.  Heads  glittering 
with  polished  gold,  divided  by  the  Pattees'  blade,  drop  in- 
cessantly ;  and  mangled  bodies,  wallowing  in  their  gore,  lay 
like  fragments  of  mighty  rocks  sparkling  with  gems  and  prec- 
ious stones.  Millions  of  sighs  and  groans  arise  on  every 
side ;  and  the  sun  is  overcast  with  blood,  as  they  clash  their 
arms,  and  wound  each  other  with  their  dreadful  instruments 
of  destruction.  Now  the  battle  is  fought  with  the  iron- 
spiked  club,  and,  as  they  close,  with  clenched  fist ;  and  the 
din  of  war  ascendeth  to  the  heavens!  They  cry  —  ''Pur- 
sue! strike!  fell  to  the  ground!  "  so  that  a  horrid  and  tum- 
ultuous noise  is  heard  on  all  sides. 

In  the  midst  of  this  dreadful  hurry  and  confusion  of  the 
fight,  Nar  and  Narayan  entered  the  field  together.  Narayan 
beholding  a  celestial  bow  in  the  liand  t)f  Nar,  it  reminded 


228  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

him  of  his  Cliakra,  the  destroyer  of  the  At>^6ia>.  '\  Ue 
faithful  weapon,  b\'  name  Soodarsan,  ready  at  the 
mind's  call,  flew  down  from  heaven  with  direct  and  reful- 
gent speed,  beautiful,  yet  terrible  to  behold.  And  being 
arrived,  glowing  like  the  sacriflcial  flame,  and  spreading  ter- 
ror around,  Narayan,  with  his  right  arm  formed  like  the  ele- 
phantine trunk,  hurled  forth  the  ponderous  orb,  the  a^jeedy 
messenger,  and  glorious  ruin  of  hostile  towns ;  who,  raging 
like  the  final  all-destroying  fire,  shot  bounding  with  desolat- 
ing force,  killing  thousands  of  the  Asoors  in  his  rapid  flight, 
burning  and  involving,  like  the  lamlient  flame,  and  cutting 
down  all  that  would  oppose  him.  And  anon  he  climbeth  the 
heavens,  and  now  again  darteth  into  the  field  like  a  Peesaeh 
to  feast  in  blood.  Now  the  dauntless  Asoors  strive,  with  re- 
peated strength  to  crush  the  Soors  with  rocks  and  mountains, 
which,  hurled  in  vast  numbers  into  the  heavens,  appeared 
like  scattered  clouds,  and  fell,  with  all  the  trees  thereon,  in 
millions  of  fear-exciting  torrents,  striking  violently  against 
each  other  with  a  mighty  noise  ;  and  in  their  fall  the  earth, 
with  all  its  fields  and  forests,  is  driven  from  its  foundation : 
they  thunder  furiously  at  each  other  as  they  roll  along  the 
field,  and  spend  their  strength  in  mutual  conflict.  Now 
Nar,  seeing  the  Soors  overwhelmed  with  fear,  filled  up  the 
path  to  heaven  with  showers  of  golden- headed  arrows,  and 
split  the  mountain  summits  witli  his  unerring  shafts  ;  and  the 
Asoors,  finding  themselves  again  sore  pressed  by  the  Soors, 
precipitately  flee  ;  some  rush  headlong  into  the  briny  waters 
of  the  ocean,  and  others  hide  themselves  within  the  bowels 
of  the  earth.  The  rage  of  the  glorious  Chakra,  Soodarsan, 
which  for  a  while  burnt  like  the  oil-fed  fire,  now  grew  cool, 


A  Philosophical  I)i'jnirfi  into  (lie  Priiiriplex  of  Rdifjion.   229 

and  lie  retired  into  the  licavens  from  wiienee  he  came.  And 
the  Soors  having  obtained  the  victory,  the  mountain  Man- 
dar  was  carried  back  to  its  former  station  with  great  re- 
spect, whilst  the  waters  also  retired,  fdlingthe  firmament  and 
tlie  heavens  with  tlieir  dreadful  roarings.  The  Soors 
guarded  the  Amreeta  witli  great  care,  and  lejoiced  exceed- 
ingly because  of  their  success;  and  Eendra,  with  all  bis  im- 
mortal bands,  gave  the  water  of  life  unto  Narayan,  to  keep 
it  for  their  use."  (Mahabharat,  book  I,  chap.  15). 

These  two  accounts  agree  in  all  essentials  concerning  the 
origin  of  evil.  The  Devil  was  an  angel  of  light,  excelling  in 
rank  and  power.  This  exalted  being  became  dissatisfied 
witli  his  position,  envied  the  glory,  majesty,  and  dominion 
of  his  Creator,  sought  by  rebellion  to  dethrone  the  only  God 
of  the  universe,  was  overcome  by  the  allied  forces  of  heaven, 
and  cast  down  into  hell.  But  though  thus  defeated  in  bat- 
tle, he  was  not  shorn  of  his  power  to  do  evil :  for  now  with 
more  bitterness,  with  implacable  hatred,  and  inereasing 
craftiness,  does  he  plot  against  the  rule  of  God  and,  assisted 
by  innumerable  confederates  obeying  his  mandates,  tempt 
and  lead  into  eternal  death  the  souls  that  God  had  created 
for  eternal  life.  The  two  accounts  we  have  said  are  sulfi- 
ciently  at  one,  but  each  is  equally  unaceei)table,  —  a  surd 
whose  root  I  sought  for  years  to  extract,  but  which  I  have 
long  since  discovered  to  be  an  imaginary  quantity.  There 
is  110  possible  waj-^  to  reconcile  such  a  belief  with  tlie  declared 
knowledge,  wisdom,  power,  goodness,  ami  Justice  of  the 
Creator.  "Would  the  Devil  have  made  war  against  God,  had 
he  known  that  it  would  result  in  his  utter  ruin?  Would 
God,     infinite   in    all    his    attributes,  —justice,    goodness, 


230  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

power,  wisdom,  —  create  a  being  so  imperfect  in  knowledge 
that  the  being  thus  created  would  involve  liimself  and  count- 
less numbers  of  innocent  beings  in  irretrievable  ruin?  With 
unlimited  knowledge  could  not  God  have  seen  the  failure  of 
the  works  of  his  hands?  With  unlimited  power  could  he  not 
have  prevented  it?  With  unlimited  goodness  could  he  have 
permitted  it?  I  declare  that  the  generally  accepted  dogma 
of  the  origin  of  evil,  is  nothing  less  than  blasphemous,  a 
horrible  libel  on  the  God  of  the  universe  ;  a  monstrous  super- 
stition revolting  to  any  and  every  unbiassed  and  educated 
mind.  It  is  but  a  modified  form  of  the  old  myth  of  the 
unending  and  universal  strife  between  the  gods,  Ormuzd 
and  Ahriman.  The  origin  of  evil  is  a  pro1)lem  which  has 
given  me  much  trouble,  but  its  difficulties  more  and  more  de- 
crease, as  I  more  and  more  recognise  the  fact  that  it  is  a 
man-of-straw,  a  difficulty  of  man's  own  creation  ;  that  it  is 
an  imaginary  quantit}'.  The  explanation  given  is  such  as 
we  should  suppose  tlie  dark  and  superstitious  mind  would 
give;  but,  for  the  reasons  given,  such  as  no  educated  and 
unbiassed  mind  is  able  to  receive. 

B :     THE  FALL  OF  MAN,  AND  ORIGINAL  SIN: 

"  But  I  fear  lest  by  any  means,  as  the  serpent  beguiled 
Eve  through  his  subtilty,  so  your  minds  should  be  cor- 
rupted from  the  simplicity  that  is  in  Christ." 

(II  Cor.  XI,  .]). 

"For  as  in  Adam  all  die,  even  so  in  Christ  shall  all  be 
made  alive."  (I  Cor.  XV.  22). 

"  Now  tlie  serpent  was  more  subtile  than  any  beast  of  the 
field  which   the   Lord   had   made.     And   lie   said   unto  the 


A  Philosopliical  Jiujninj  into  the  Princiides  of  RelUjion.    2.'51 

woman,  Yea,  hath  God  said,  Ye  shall  not  eat  of  every  tree 
of  the  garden?  And  the  \v(jm;in  said  unto  the  serpent,  We 
may  eat  of  the  fruit  of  the  trees  of  the  garden :  but  of  tlie 
fruit  of  the  tree  whic-li  is  in  the  midst  of  the  garden,  God 
hath  said,  Ye  shall  not  eat  of  it,  neither  shall  ye  touch  it, 
lest  ye  die.  And  the  serpent  said  unlo  the  woman,  Ye  shall 
not  surely  die.  For  God  doth  know  that  in  the  day  ^e  eat 
thereof,  then  your  eyes  shall  be  opened,  and  ye  shall  be  as 
gods,  knowing  good  and  evil.  And  when  the  woman  saw 
that  the  tree  was  good  for  food,  and  that  it  was  pleasant  to 
the  eyes,  and  a  tree  to  be  desired  to  make  one  wise,  she 
took  of  the  fruit  thereof,  and  did  eat,  and  gave  also  unto 
her  husband  with  her ;  and  he  did  eat..  And  the  eyes  of 
them  both  were  opened,  and  they  knew  that  they  were 
naked  ;  and  they  sewed  fig  leaves  together,  and  made  them- 
selves aprons.  And  the  Lord  God  said  unto  the  woman. 
What  is  this  that  thou  hast  done?  And  the  woman  said. 
The  serpent  beguiled  me,  and  I  did  eat.  Unto  the  woman 
he  said,  I  will  greatly  multiply  th}'  sorrow  and  thy  concep- 
tion ;  in  sorrow  shalt  thou  liring  forth  children  ;  and  thy 
desire  shall  be  to  thy  husband,  and  he  shall  rule  over  thee. 
And  unto  Adam  he  said.  Because  thou  hast  hearkened 
unto  the  voice  of  thy  wife  and  hast  eaten  of  the  tree,  of 
which  I  commanded  thee,  saying  thou  shalt  not  eat  of  it: 
cursed  is  the  ground  for  thy  sake  ;  in  sorrow  shalt  thou  eat 
of  it  all  the  days  of  thy  life ;  thorns  also  and  thistles  shall 
it  bring  forth  to  thee ;  and  tiiou  shalt  eat  the  herb  of  the 
field  ;  in  the  sweat  of  thy  face  shalt  thou  eat  bread,  till  thou 
return  unto  the  ground  ;  for  out  of  it  wast  thou  taken  ;  for 
dust  thou  art  and  unto  dust  shalt  thou  return." 

(Genesis,  TIT,  1--20). 


232  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

Here  we  have  another  dogma  absolutely  irreconcilable 
with  tlie  Divine  Character  as  declaretl  by  Christians  and 
believed  by  universal  man.  Man  we  are  told  (Gen.  I.  2G- 
27)  was  created  in  the  likeness  of  God  ;  and  in  that  likeness 
God  desired  man  should  continue.  After  God  had  done  his 
work,  the  Devil,  God's  implacable  enemy,  soon  appears  on 
the  scene,  and  soon  succeeds  in  overthrowing  what  God  had 
established.  It  is  true  enough  tliat  deliverance  was  promised, 
but  this  deliverance  was  very  imcomplcte,  partial:  "Enter 
ye  in  at  the  strait  gate:  for  wide  is  the  gate  and  broad  is 
the  way,  that  leadeth  to  destruction,  and  many  there  be 
which  go  in  thereat:  Because  strait  is  the  gate,  and  narrow 
is  the  way,  which  leadeth  unto  life,  and  few  there  be  that 
audit."  (Math.  VII,  13-14). 

"  He  that  believeth  and  is  baptized  shall  be  saved  :  but  he 
that  believeth  not  shall  be  damned.  (Mark  XVI,  IG). 

"  Who  is  a  liar  but  he  that  denieth  that  Jesus  is  the 
Christ?  He  is  antichrist,  that  denieth  the  Father  and  the 
Son.  Whosoever  denieth  the  Son,  the  same  hath  not  the 
Father."  (John,  II,  22-23). 

"For  that  which  I  do,  I  allow  not:  for  what  I  would, 
that  I  do  not;  but  what  I  hate,  that  I  do.  For  the  good 
that  I  would,  I  do  not:  but  the  evil  which  I  would  not, 
that  I  do.  Now  if  I  do  that  I  would  not,  it  is  no  more  I 
that  do  it,  but  sin  that  dwelleth  in  me.  I  find  then  a  law, 
that,  when  I  would  do  good^  evil  is  present  with  me." 

(Romans  VII,  l.">21). 

If  God  is  all-knowing,  did  he  not  know  that  Adam  would 
disobey?  If  God  is  all- wise  and  all-powerful,  could  he  not 
have  given  man  such  wisdom  at  his  creation,  as  would  have 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.  233 

saved  him  from  being  deceived  and  from  utti-r  ruin?  If 
God  is  all-good,  all-powerful,  and  all-wise,  could  lie  have 
permitted  the  Devil  to  assume  such  disguise  and  thus 
deceive  the  head  of  the  human  family,  and  ruin  the  whole 
race?  If  God  created  man  holy  and  wished  him  to  remain 
so,  is  it  i)()ssil)le  that  the  Gcjd  of  the  universe  could  be 
thwarted  in  his  pur[)Ose?  Did  not  God  when  he  created 
man,  know  that  he  would  fall?  If  God  knew  that  man 
would  disobey,  could  man  have  saved  himself  from  such  dis- 
obedience? Can  the  creature  set  at  naught  the  providence 
of  the  Creator?  Could  man  have  done  other  than  what  God 
knew  he  would  do  before  he  had  created  him?  Could  a 
Creator,  infinite  in  wisdom,  power,  and  goodness,  fail  to  do 
all  things  right,  or  to  bestow  upon  the  works  of  his  hands 
everything  necessary  for  their  welfare,  and  superintend  and 
guide  them  forever  according  to  his  oiiginal  purpose? 
What  a  horrid  dogma  is  the  doctrine  of  the  Fall !  Con- 
ceived by  a  mind  unenlightened,  superstitious,  and  gory,  it 
is  perpetuated  by  self-interest  and  ignorance.  I  go  to  work 
and  make  pistol,  powder,  and  ball;  I  load  the  pistol,  put  it 
into  the  hands  of  a  murderer.  I  then  bestow  a  million  dol- 
lars upon  a  friend,  and,  afterwards,  unknown  to  him,  set  him 
up  as  a  target  for  tlie  murderer  wiio  slays  him  in  cold  blood, 
and  takes  with  his  reeking  hand  the  wealth  of  another. 
God  created  an  angel  of  light,  knew  he  would  l)eeome  the 
devil,  yet  still  persisted  in  creating  him.  The  Devil  exists, 
as  all  other  created  beings,  at  the  pleasure  of  God  and 
through  his  sustaining  power;  and  yet  God  does  not  refuse 
to  prolong  the  existence  of  this  dread  being,  who  is  tlie  al- 
leged source  of  all  our  mischief.    God,  when  he  created  man, 


234  Essays  on   God  and  Man, 

knew  he  would  fall,  knew  he  would  be  fit  food  for  the 
Devil's  digestion ;  j'et  he  persisted  in  creating  him.  How 
can  a  man  of  sense  believe  such  a  libel  on  the  Source  of  all 
goodness  and  truth,  the  God  and  Father  of  all! 

''By  one  man  sin  entered  into  the  world,  and  death  by 
sin,"  although  we  never  knew  that  one  man  nor  committed 
to  him  any  agency.  AVe  are  made  answerable  for  the  con- 
duct of  a  man  of  whom  we  knew  nothing,  and  who  knew 
nothing  of  us.  The  command  was  given  to  him,  he  dis- 
obej^ed ;  for  his  wilful  disobedience  judgment  was  passed 
upon  him  ;  and  we,  his  innocent  descent,  are  made  to  share 
his  curse,  notwithstanding  our  ignorance  of  the  law.  We 
fell  in  him.  He  is  the  root,  we  are  the  branches.  The 
federal  head  of  the  race  is  lie,  who  was  too  weak  to  carry 
his  own  burdens,  much  less  those  of  mankind.  The  generic 
man  was  he,  who  thought  less  of  the  word  of  the  Almighty, 
spoken  face  to  face,  than  of  the  charms  of  a  serpent  or  the 
allurements  of  his  wife.  Nor  was  tlie  tempter  such  as  one 
might  suppose  another  would  obey ;  but  a  snake !  How 
unnatural  I  how  monstrous  is  this  whole  account  of  the 
fall  of  man  !  What  a  race  representative  is  he,  who  prefers 
the  coils  of  a  snake  to  the  love  and  favor,  or  to  the  word,  of 
the  Infinite  God  !  Tiiis  problem  troubled  me  for  years  ;  but 
I  finally  discovered  that  this  was  another  problem  of  man's 
own  creation,  a  man  -  of  -  straw,  an  imaginary  quantity. 
And  now  I  cannot  but  see  that  tiie  generally  accepted 
doctrines  of  the  Fall  and  original  sin,  are  blasphemous,  a 
libel  on  the  character  of  God,  and  revolting  to  the  mind 
of  ever}'  unbiassed  and  educated  man. 


^■1  PJiil'isophiiyd  JiKjniri/  into  the  Principles  of  Reli'jion.    2;i5 

C:    THE    ONLY    T^FVELATIOX,    TIIK    ONLY    SA~ 
VI OUR : 

"  Neither  is  there  salvation  ia  any  otlier :  for  there  is  none 
other  name  under  heaven  given  among  men,  whereby  we 
must  be  saved."  (Acts,  IV,  12). 

"  But  I  say,  that  the  things  which  the  Gentiles  sacrifice 
they  sacrifice  to  devils,  and  not  to  God:  and  I  would  not 
that  ye  should  have  fellowship  with  devils." 

(1  Cor.  X,  20). 

Here  we  come  to  another  surd,  an  irrational  quantity,  one 
whose  root  none,  however  diligently  he  may  have  sought, 
has  been  able  to  obtain.  Concerning  the  dogma  that  the 
Christian  Scriptures  are  the  oiil}'  revelation  of  God's  will  to 
men,  I  have  already  sufficiently  written  in  the  "  Knowability 
of  God."  It  cannot  be  questioned  that  the  various  sacred 
blocks  or  scriptures  of  the  world,  are,  in  their  principles,  at 
one ;  nor  that  tlie  moral  teachings  of  the  different  guides  of 
humanity,  essentially  agree.  The  bod}-^  of  the  food  on  which 
we  feed,  is  one  and  the  same ;  but  we  all  manifest  our  pecul- 
iarities in  religion  and  morals  by  the  seasonings  we  use. 
The  staff  of  life  is  bread,  the  sauces  are  many. 

That  a  man  who  lives  and  dies  without  faith  in  Christ's 
divinit}',  is  tiierefore  necessarily  damned,  as  has  been  lauglit 
throughout  tlie  history  of  the  Christian  church,  is  an  asser- 
tion so  utterl3  at  variance  with  every  conception  of  justice, 
that  belief  in  it  must  naturally  in  ilue  time  Viken  the  be- 
liever to  the  unjust  and  bloody  god  he  worships.  And  al- 
though nothing  is  more  capable  of  disproof  than  such  an  un- 
just and  bloody  assertion,  yet  the  darkness  which  shrouds 


236  Essays  on  God  and  3Ian, 

the  pulpit  still  prevents  the  priests  from  seeing  it.  Where 
darkness  fails  to  veil  the  pulpit,  the  frequent  cause  of  lead- 
ing trusting  souls  captive,  is  insincerity.  The  preacher  says 
with  Autolycus : 

"Ha,  ha!   what  a  fool  Honesty  is !   and  Trust,  his  sworn 
brother  a  ver}-  simple  gentleman  I" 

(Shakespere :  Winter's  Tale). 

The  great  majorit}^  of  thinking  men  to-day  either  wholly  . 
disbelieve  in  the  divinit}'  of  Christ,  or  sincerel}'  and  pro- 
foundly question  it ;  and  among  those  there  are  found  mul- 
titudes whom  humanity  is  forever  accustomed  to  liken  most 
to  God:  they  are  reverent,  truth-loving,  sincere,  faithful, 
charitable,  merciful,  diligent,  and  forgiving.  None  greater 
has  ever  lived  than  multitudes  who  have  lived  and  are  living 
without  faith  in  Christ's  divinity,  none  purer,  none  better, 
none  more  like  what  we  would  suppose  God  would  have  us 
all  be.  They  have  demonstrated  by  their  lives  their  salva- 
tion without  such  faith.  Without  belief  in  Christ's  divinity 
they  have  called,  and  God  has  answered  ;  they  have  stretched 
out  their  hands,  and  God  has  received  t'lem  ;  the}'  have 
wept,  and  God  has  wiped  awa}-  their  tears ;  they  have  died, 
and  God  has  given  them  life.  Justice  would,  it  seems,  de- 
mand this.  Surely  belief  in  Christ's  divinit}'  saves  no  man. 
Rather  does  living  in  accord  with  the  drawings  of  the  divine 
J^pi^it,  which  f recjuents  all  humanity,  and  whose  will  is  more 
especially  exemplified  in  the  life  and  teachings  of  Christ, 
bring  to  man  that  j^eace  which  the  a  ulgnr  world  can  neither 
give  nor  take  awa}'.  We  are  saved  by  living  a  virtuous  life, 
a  life  in  deed,  not  in  profession,  a  life  such  as  Christ  lived, 
nol  by  having  any  peculiar  l)elief  concerning  his  nature  or 


>4.  Ph'dosoiihirnl  Iniialri]  into  the  Princi'ijles  of  Religion.    237 

personality.  To  what  horrid  conclusions  are  we  necessarily 
driven  by  I)elief  in  the  doctrine  that  without  faith  in  Christ 
or  in  his  divinity  there  is  no  sa!vati(jn  !  Su[)posing  that  man 
has  been  existing  for  "not  more  that  12,000  ycais  and  in- 
creasing at  the  same  rate  as  to-day,  he  will  then  have  been 
multiplying  in  a  geometrical  ratio  for  not  Kss  than  400  gen- 
erations of  30  years  each.  On  this  calculation  we  shall  find 
that  tlie  sum  of  all  the  individuals  who  have  lived  will  be  ex- 
pressed by  a  row  of  121  figures,  expressing  a  (piantit}'  be- 
yond all  human  conception.  IIow  few  comparatively  of  all 
this  number  have  had  faith  in  Christ!  It  is  horrible  to 
think  that  God  could  create  human  l)eings  and  thus  sacrifice 
them,  using  billions  for  a  unit!  Is  it  possible  that  God  is 
less  just  and  merciful  than  the  creatures  he  has  made? 
What  an  absurdity !  Is  it  possible  that  he  is  drunken  with 
the  blood  of  humanity?  "What  blasphemy!  Awaj'^  with 
such  a  superstition !  Away  with  sucli  darkness !  Dare  man 
thus  lil)el  the  God  of  the  universe  and  Father  of  all !  Dare 
we  thus  blaspheme  the  only  True,  and  Good!  I  once  knew 
no  better  myself.  I  fought  against  ray  own  rationality  for 
3'cars  ;  l)ut  finally  I  discovered  that  this  horrid  dictum  is  a 
creaticm  of  the  priesthood,  a  man-of-straw,  a  surd,  an  im- 
aginary quantitv.  Now  I  am  convinced  tliat  he  who  liveth 
righteous!}',  is  righteous,  is  loved  by  God,  and  in  due  time 
shall  shine  forth  as  the  sun:  "To  him  that  soweth  right- 
eousness, shall  be  a  sure  reward.  The  Lord  lovelh  him  that 
foUoweth  after  righteousness."  (Piov.  XI.  IS;  XV,  '.»). 
"  For  the  righteous  Lord  loveth  righteousness  ;  his  counten- 
ance doth  l)ehold  the  upright.  Lord,  who  shall  aliide  in 
thy  tabernacle?     Tie  that  walketh  uprightly,  and   worketh 


238  Esaai/s  on  God  coicl  Man., 

righteousness,  and  speaketh  the  truth  in  his  heart." 
(Psalms  XI,  7;  XV,  2).  "But  in  every  nation  he  that 
feareth  him,  and  worketh  righteousness,  is  accepted  with 
him.'  (Acts  X,  35),  "  Blessed  are  they  which  do  hunger 
and  thirst  after  righteousness:  for  they  shall  be  filled. 
Blessed  are  the  pure  in  lieart:  for  they  shall  see  God. 
Blessed  are  the  peacemakers :  for  they  shall  be  called  the 
children  of  God."  (Math.  V,  6-9). 

D:  BLOOD- ATONEMENT    AND    VICARIOUS   SACRI- 
FICE : 

"  And  Noah  budded  an  altar  unto  the  Lord  ;  and  took  of 
every  clean  beast,  and  of  every  clean  fowl,  and  offered 
burnt-offerings  on  the  altar.  Aud  the  Lord  smelled  a  sweet 
savour."  (Gen.  VII,  20).  "And  the  blood  shall  be  to 
3'ou  for  a  token  upon  the  houses  where  ye  are :  and  when  I 
see  the  blood  I  will  pass  over  you,  and  the  plague  shall  not 
be  upon  you  to  destroy  you.  .  .  .  And  thou  shalt  take 
of  the  blood  of  the  bullock  and  put  it  upon  the  horns  of  the 
altar  with  thy  finger,  and  pour  all  the  blood  beside  the  bot- 
tom of  the  altar.  And  thou  shalt  take  all  the  fat  that  cov- 
ereth  the  inwards  and  the  caul  that  is  above  the  liver,  and 
the  two  kidneys,  and  the  fat  that  is  upon  them,  and  burn 
them  upon  the  altar.  But  the  flesh  of  the  bullock,  and  his 
skin,  and  his  dung,  shalt  thou  burn  with  fire  without  the 
camp:  it  is  a  sin-offering.  Thou  shalt  also  taj^e  one  ram, 
and  thou  shalt  slay  the  ram,  and  thou  shalt  take  his 
blood,  and  sprinkle  it  round  about  upon  the  altar.  .  .  . 
And  Aaron  shall  make  an  atonement  upon  the  horns 
of  the  altar  once  in  a  year  with  the  blood  of  the  sin-offer- 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principlea  of  Reliyion.   '1^9 

ing  of  atonement;  once  in  a  year  shall  he  make  atone- 
ment upon  it  throughout  your  generations:  it  is  most 
holy  unto  the  Lord.  .  .  .  And  Jei)hthah  vowed  a  vow 
unto  the  Lord.  .  .  .  Whatsoever  cometh  forth  of  the 
doors  of  my  Ikjusc  to  meet  nic,  when  I  return  in  peace  from 
the  children  of  Ammon,  sliall  surely  be  the  Lord's  and  I  will 
offer  it  for  a  burnt-offering.  And  Jophthah  came  to  Mizpeh 
unto  his  house,  and  l)ehold  his  daughter  came  out  to  meet 
him  .  .  who  did  witii  her  according  to  his  vow  whicli  he 
had  vowed.  And  Elijah  said  unto  them.  Take  the  prophets 
of  Baal ;  let  not  one  of  them  escape.  And  Elijah  brought 
them  down  to  the  brook  Kishon,  and  slew  tliem  there.  .  . 
And  almost  all  things  are  l)y  the  law  purged  with  blood  :  and 
without  shedding  of  blood  is  no  remission." 
(Exodus  XII,  XXIX,  XXX;  Judges  XI;  I  Kings  XVIII; 

Ileb.  IX). 

"The  natives  of  Tonga  cut  off  a  i)ortion  of  the  little  fin- 
ger as  a  sacrifice  to  the  gods  for  a  recover}'  of  a  superior 
sick  relative."  (Spencer:  Prin.  of  Sociol.,  II,  56). 

"The  Sandwich  Islanders  knock  out  from  one  to  four  ol 
the  front  teeth  to  propitiate  the  ghosts  of  dead  rulers." 
(Ibi,  59).  "  At  the  annual  festivals  of  the  Phrygian  god- 
dess Amma,  it  was  the  custom  for  young  men  to  make 
themselves  eunuchs  witii  a  sharp  shell,  crying  out  at  the 
same  time,  'Take  this  Agdistis.'  Among  tiie  Amaponda 
Kaffirs  it  was  usual  for  the  ruling  chief,  on  his  accession,  to 
be  washed  in  the  blood  of  a  near  relative,  generally  a 
brother  who  was  put  to  death  on  the  occasion  "  (Ibi,  06, 
70).  The  Mexicans  were  accustomed  to  propitiate  their 
ffods  with  their  own  blood  or  with  that  of  their  infant  cliil- 


240  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

dren,     at  the  same  time  offering  to  them  the  warm  flesh  of 
their  innocent  victims. 

I  do  not  believe  it  is  possible  for  a  cultivated  mind,  not 
unduly  influenced  by  self-interest,  to  believe  in  the  doc- 
trines of  blood-atonement  and  vicarious  sacrifice.  These 
doctrines  are  capable  of  a  rational  explanation  ;  they  are  not 
shrouded  in  mystery  except  to  the  superstitious.  Their  ori- 
gin is  human.  It  is  natural  for  the  captive  to  propitiate  the 
captor ;  it  is  natural  for  the  captor  to  favorably  receive  such 
propitiation.  The  living  king,  superior,  or  conqueror,  is 
propitiated  because  of  his  known  power  to  destroy  or  kill ; 
the  dead  king,  superior,  or  conqueror,  is  propitiated  because 
of  the  superstitious  dread  of  his  gliost.  It  is  absolutely  cer- 
tain that  such  propitiation  was  the  custom  as  far  back  as 
the  footsteps  of  humanity  can  be  traced.  There  is  nothing 
against,  but  everything  in  favor  of,  the  theory  that  from 
such  propitiation  arose  the  practice  of  propitiating  the  gods. 
"What  can  be  more  reasonable  than  such  an  explanation?  Is 
not  God  to  the  primitive  mind  simply  an  enlarged  man? 
In  the  beginning  was  man  made  in  God's  image,  and  by  the 
fall  we  are  told  he  became  as  one  of  the  gods.  God  walks 
as  man:  in  the  garden  in  the  cool  of  the  day;  he  works 
as  man:  he  formed  man  of  the  dust  of  the  ground,  as  a 
child  makes  out  of  clay  its  mud  doll ;  he  frets  and  repents 
as  man :  and  it  repented  Jehovah  that  he  had  made  man ; 
he  has  in  some  way  or  other  sons,  as  man,  who  fall  in  love 
with  women  :  "  the  sons  of  God  came  in  unto  the  daughters 
of  men,  and  they  bare  cliildren  to  them,  the  same  became 
mighty  men."  (Vid.  also  Clementine  Homilies,  13-18). 
Everywhere  among  uncivilised  nations,  no  less  among  the 


A  Philosoiihiitd  IiKjiiiri/  Inio  thi'  Pn')icij)Ies  of  Relifjio)i.  241 

Hebrews  than  others,  do  we  find  the  same  bloody,  gross, 
antliropomorphic  conceptions  of  the  deity.  To  such  con- 
ceptions should  we,  and  must  every  uni)iassed  and  educated 
man,  refer  the  doctrines  of  l)lood-at()nement  and  vicarious 
sacrifice.  Even  to  a  refined  person  tlie  thought  of  immola- 
tion is  revolting;  and  propitiation  witli  blood  is  most 
unsi)eakably  sickening.  If  we  think  of  the  deity  at  all,  it  is 
true  we  can  think  of  him  only  as  having  such  attributes  as 
we  are  acquainted  witli ;  but  it  is  horrible  to  represent  God, 
the  fountain  of  all  goodness  and  trutli,  in  the  form  of  a 
brute,  a  savage,  a  beast,  delighting  in  reeking  flesh  and  the 
living  stream  of  steaming  blood.  Anthropomorphise  we 
must,  if  we  think  of  God  at  all ;  but  it  is  blasphemous  to 
liken  God  to  anytliing  less  than  the  purest,  holiest,  and 
best  with  which  we  are  acquainted.  Plato  invented  a  good 
name  for  God,  which  Cliristians  would  do  very  well  to 
adopt:  he  called  him  the  "Good."  What  good  man 
delights  in  the  stench  arising  from  the  sacrifices  of  pigeons, 
rams,  doves,  bulls,  bullocks,  kids,  goats,  and  lambs! 
What  good  man  delights  in  having  his  furniture  stained 
with  blood  and  besmeared  with  bloody  and  filthy  fat! 
What  pure  heart  could  hear  the  groans  of  the  dying  victims 
and  see  their  life  running  out  in  streams  of  livid  blood, 
without  putting  his  lingers  into  his  cars,  and  crying  for  the 
rocks  and  hills  to  fall  to  hide  from  his  gaze  such  horritl  and 
sickening  sights !  What  noble  father  could  be  a  Jeplithah 
and  (iffer  n[)  his  daughter;  or  do  as  Jehovah  is  said  to  have 
done,  and  offer  up  his  only  son,  without  being  overwhelmed 
with  the  sense  of  his  guilt,  and  crushed  to  death  by  the  con- 
scious weight  of  his  crime !     How  dare  priests  or  laymen 


242  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

think  of  God  under  such  bloody  forfns!  What  a  libel! 
What  blasphemy!  Having  eyes,  they  do  not  see;  having 
ears,  they  do  not  hear.  Being  compelled  to  believe  that 
God  is  just  and  true,  for  man}'  years  I  myself  was  troubled 
with  this  problem,  until  I  saw  that  tliis  too  was  a  will-o'-the 
wisp,  a  creation  of  medicine-men  and  priests,  a  man-of- 
straw,  an  imaginary  quantity,  a  surd,  whose  root  no  one  can 
ever  extract.  The  only  effect  the  doctrines  of  vicarious 
sacrifice  and  blood-atonement  have  on  me  t<)-(l;iy,  is  to  set 
my  soul  on  fire  with  the  indignation  which  then  consumes 
me  at  such  Jiorrid  and  libelous  caricature  of  that  dear  God 
in  whom  I  know  I  live  and  have  my  being ;  whose  name  to 
me  forever  is  the  "  Good." 

If  one  should  ask  me  how  souls  are  governed  in 
the  so-called  other  world,  I  would  reply,  as  they 
are  governed  in  this.  Were  there  two  gods,  the  answer 
would  necessarily  be  attended  with  uncertainty ;  but 
since  the  existence  of  two  or  more  gods  is  out  of  the 
question,  we  may  say  with  certaint}',  that  in  like  manner  as 
God  rules  us  in  this  state  of  existence,  so  will  he  rule  us  in 
the  next.  It  is  an  awful  yet  beautiful  truth,  that  here 
every  cause  has  its  effect.  Prayer  and  sacrifice  avail  not  to 
prevent  the  operation  of  this  law.  It  is  a. law  universal  and 
eternal,  as  true  in  the  world  of  mind  as  in  that  of  matter. 
Without  mentioning  the  more  obvious  cases  of  cause  and 
effect,  we  may,  by  way  of  illustration,  speak  of  the  law  of 
heredity,  a&  less  commonly  known.  In  mechanics  the 
resultant  of  two  given  forces  will  differ  from  either,  and 
will  be  represented  by  the  diagonal  of  the  quadrilateral 
formed  on  the  two  sides  which  represent  the  two  given  forces ; 


A  Philosophical  l)tqntnj  info  the  J^-inciples  of  Religion     243 

so  in  the  case  of  parents  we  have  two  given  forces  acting 
simultaneously  on  a  third  bod}-,  and  producing  a  result 
equivalent  neither  to  father  or  mother,  but  representing  a 
mean.  IMental  no  loss  than  pliysical  peculiarities  are 
handed  dovvn  from  parent  to  child.  Snpcrimraerary  digits 
are  known  to  have  been  Imiided  <l()wn  for  five  generations. 
Lambert,  the  "porcupine  man,"  transmitted  his  worty  skin 
to  six  sons  and  two  grandsons.  Frederick  William  I  of 
Prussia  produced  gigantic  greiiadieis  by  matching  his  tall- 
est soldiers  with  women  of  similar  stature.  Even  a  droop- 
ing of  the  eye-lid,  a  spot  on  the  iris,  a  power  to  move  the 
scalp,  have  been  transmitted  by  the  forces  of  heredity-. 
Fifty  per  cent  of  the  cases  of  gout,  and  no  less  large  a  per- 
centage of  the  cases  of  consumption,  are  but  the  inevitable 
results  of  the  law  cf  cause  and  effect.  Cancer,  scrofula, 
insanity,  and  defects  of  sight,  have,  to  a  large  extent,  a 
similar  origin.  Says  .Sir  Henry  Holland:  "No  organ  or 
texture  of  the  body  is  exempt  from  hereditary  disease." 
We  take  the  life  of  the  nuirderer,  but  scarcely  ever  think 
that  he  was  a  murderer  born  ;  we  brand  witli  infamy  the 
felon,  forgetful  that  the  thought  of  doing  the  desperate  deed 
and  the  power  of  execution,  had  potentially  existed  in  the 
causes  that  gave  liiia  life;  and  tluit,  tlic  vicious  tendencies 
living  in  the  very  elements  of  his  being,  they  had  but  to  go 
through  a  period  of  incubation  in  order  to  carry  him  head- 
long into  his  life  of  vice  and  sliame.  As  the  vicious  classes 
transmit  to  their  doomed  offspring  their  vicious  tendencies, 
so  do  tlie  better  classes  transmit  lo  tluir  offspring  a  better 
humanit}.  Says  the  German  Preyer :  '^  In  the  circles  of 
the   Biitisli    nobility,    wliere    the   greatest  luxury  prc'vails. 


244  Essays  on  God  unci  ]\lan, 

longevity,  good  health  and  intelligence  have  almost  become 
hereditaiy."  And  sa^^s  the  classic  Irving :  "  John  Bull,  to 
all  appearance  is  a  plain,  downiight,  matter-of-fact  fellow, 
with  much  less  of  poctiy  about  him  than  rich  prose.  He 
loathes  sentiment;  will  stand  by  a  friend  in  a  quarrel,  with 
life  and  purse,  however  soundly  he  ma}^  be  cudgelled  ;  to 
tell  the  ti'uth,  he  lias  a  propeusit}'  to  be  somewhat  too  ready  ; 
his  virtues  are  all  his  own,  all  plain,  homebred,  and  unaf- 
fected ;  his  extravagance  savors  of  his  generosity  ;  his  quar- 
relsomeness, of  his  courage ;  his  credulity,  of  his  open 
faith  ;  his  vanit\-,  of  his  pride  ;  and  his  bluntness,  of  his 
sincerity.  They  are  all  the  redundancies  of  a  rich  and  lib- 
eral character.  He  is  like  his  old  oak,  rough  without,  but 
sound  and  solid  within;  whose  bark  abounds  with  excres- 
cences in  proportion  to  the  growth  and  grandeur  of  Ihe  tim- 
ber;  and  whose  branches  make  a  fearful  groaning  and  mur- 
muring in  the  least  storm,  from  their  very  magnitude  and 
luxuriance."  It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  courage,  love 
of  fairplay,  honor,  raagnanimit^s  and  refinement  are  innate 
in  the  English  nobleman.  We  arc  not  left  in  uncertainty 
concerning  the  will  of  God  in  this  world:  "  Whatsoever  a 
man  soweth,  tliat  shall  he  reap."  Nor  can  the  reasonable 
man  believe  in  tlie  unit}'  of  nature,  and  in  her  as  the  embod- 
iment of  God,  and  at  the  same  time  admit  any  more  uncer- 
tainty in  regard  to  the  laws  which  must  govern  us  in  the 
so-called  other  world.  Granting  that  man  is  immortal,  it  is 
certain  that  there  can  be  no  break  in  his  life.  There  is  no 
miracle,  no  special  creation,  nor  is  there  any  state  of  exist- 
ence which  is  not  the  natural  result  of  countless  preceding 
states.     All  the  sacrifices  and  blood-offerings  instituted  by 


-.1  Pltilosophiod  In'iuiru  into  the  I'riiiriple.i  of  lieliijion.   2\h 

the  wily,  the  self-seeking,  or  the  sui)erstitioiis,  and  offered 
up  from  the  beginning  to  the  present  clay,  would  not  be 
effectual  in  rendering  ino[)erative,  or  changing  the  action  of, 
any  one  law  of  nature.  Of  this  fact  no  unbiassed  and  edu- 
cated man  has  any  doubt  whatever.  In  this  world  blood- 
atonement,  and  vicarious  sacrifice  avail  nothing  in  making 
of  the  one  and  immutable  (iod  a  Junij)ing-Jack ;  and  as 
this  immutable  God  is  the  one  and  only  Ruler  of  all  worlds, 
no  reasonable  man  can  for  a  moment  believe  that  the  offer- 
ings of  blood  and  vicarious  sacrifice  have  any  more  power 
over,  or  can  in  any  way  affect,  our  future  state. 

In  the  beginning  it  is  said  God  created  man  in  his  own 
likeness;  but  with  much  more  truth  ma}'  we  say  that  since 
the  beginning eveiy  man  has  made  his  god  l)y  continuing  the 
process.  The  god  of  tlie  average  preacher  differs  little,  if 
at  all,  from  the  god  of  the  ancient  Mexicans,  or  the  Druids. 
Away  with  such  bloody  conceptions  of  the  deity !  Better 
worship  humanity  than  such  a  foul  likeness  of  the  Father  of 
all.  The  effect  of  such  worship  has  borne  most  poisonous 
fruit  in  the  past:  it  has  naturally  likened  the  worsiiipper  to 
the  god  he  has  worshipped;  it  has  matle  ])im  unmerciful, 
tyrannical,  and  murderous.  Blood  has  followed  in  his 
tracks  everywhere  from  the  daN's  of  Constantine  to  those  of 
the  fires  of  Sraithfield  :  and  to-day  he  is  restrained  only  by 
the  power  of  the  law,  tlu'  weakness  of  his  own  arm.  and  the 
general  scepticism  of  the  age.  Reason  is  awakening;  let 
the  tliinking  world  rejoice.  The  evil  of  the  doctrines  of 
blood-atonement  and  vicarious  sacrifice,  are  seen  not  onl}'  in 
that  they  transform  the  "Good  "  into  the  evil,  God  into  a 
monstei ,  the  love  of  tlir  Father  into  the  hatred  of  the  aven- 


246  Essays  on   God  and  Man, 

ger,  the  beautiful  aud  peaceful  into  the  beastly  and  fero- 
cious; —  but  also  in  that  they  are  ruinous  to  the  develoi)- 
ment  of  the  highest  morals,  which  is  possible  only  on  the 
belief  that  character  is  the  necessary  result  of  one's  own  ac- 
tivity, under  the  general  and  unvarying  laws  of  nature. 
Blood  washes  not  away  the  stains  of  evil  living,  whicli  can 
be  removed  only  by  subsequent  and  long-continued  opposite 
endeavor;  sacrifices  and  burnt-offerings  avail  not  in  lifting 
up  the  human  soul,  which  can  be  raised  out  of  darkness  into 
light,  only  by  well  directed  and  persistent  activity.  To  the 
doctrines  of  blood-atonement  and  vicarious  sacrifice  I  bid 
adieu.  A  ghastly  phantom  are  ye,  conceived  by  bloody 
minds.  Avaunt,  and  hide  yourselves  amidst  the  horrid 
blackness  whence  ye  appeared !  Plenceforth,  as  imaginary 
quantities,  ye  shall  trouble  me  no  more. 

AVe  will  end  what  we  have  to  say  on  the  subject  of  vica- 
rious sacrifice  and  blood-atonement  by  giving  the  following 
from  Sanchoniatlio,  as  possibly  having  been  the  basis  for  the 
Christian  myth  of  the  sacrifice  by  God  the  Father  of  his  only 
begotten  Son  ;  or,  if  not  as  the  basis,  then,  at  least,  as  illus- 
trating the  fact  that  such  dark  and  bloody  conceptions  are 
common  to  every  dark  and  bloody  age : 

"  It  was  the  custom  among  the  ancients,  in  times  of  great 
calamity,  to  prevent  the  ruin  of  all,  for  the  rulers  of  the  city 
or  nation  to  sacrifice  to  the  avenging  deities  the  most  be- 
loved of  their  children  as  the  price  of  redemption  :  thevwho 
were  devoted  for  this  purpose  were  offered  mystically.  For 
Cronus,  whom  the  Ph(Enicians  call  II,  and  who  after  his 
death  was  deified  and  instated  in  the  planet  which  Ijears  his 
name,   when  king,  had  liy  a  nymph  f)f  the  country  called 


-1  Philosophical  Inqninj  into  the  Prinriplcs  of  Jielirjioii.   247 

Anobret  iiii  only  sou,  who  on  that  account  is  styled  Icoud, 
for  so  the  Pha'nicians  still  call  an  only  son:  and  when  <^reat 
danger  from  war  beset  the  land  he  adorned  the  altar,  and 
invosted  his  son  with  the  emblems  of  royalty,  and  sacrificed 

him." 

E:   DAMNATION  OR  FUTURE    PUNISHMENT: 

"Then  shall  he  say  also  unto  them  on  the  left  hand,  De- 
part from  me,  ye  cursed,  into  everlasting  lire,  prepared  for 
the  devil  and  his  angels.  And  these  shall  go  away  into  ever- 
lasting punishment."  (Math.  XXV,  41,  46). 

"  zmj'i  (h  a/dd'.iiu^  (i.tj  y.ai  (wuo-j^  eis"  ~r^/"v  r:/'/  /.a-rtiiJ'jTTou- 
<jCv  iV  'A'.dou  /.a:  y.iKT/.'.yu)  v'luip  w^ayxa^^ou'T'.  ipzpsv^.  .  .  .  at  r- 
Yni>  '/.iYi>f).s-^()'.  ij.uOot  -tpi  :u)\>  cv  W'.i^ui)^  ws"  ''>'■'  s./0(/.oz  aot/.r^da'^zo. 
Stt  rz;!  (I'jliiyac  o;xr/.>,  y.arayzXioij.z.'m  r^w^j  mr^  (Irj  (jzfie(fouaiv 
aurii'J  TTTv  ^'i->'/''^i'-'i  !''Q  «/')}^iJ9  wat,  ,  .  .  A)./.a  yaii  v^  ' A'.oou  Siy.ry/ 
d(oai>;).v^  iiyj  «v  vSadt  adiy.rjffwjit.'.  .  .  .  5jy  noy  v(ifi(i<}  63^ 
xai  uzi  y.ai  •/uv  trc  efrrtv  iV  ^i^^rc,  roi'/  (V/dinii-u)/  rc^  //£>  dcxatui'}  ro> 
yj.'ov  o'.z/.0(t>Ta  y.ai  o^coic,  z~ii<ia->  TzXtozr^ar^^  £9  iiay.apmv  >r^ffuui 
a-iior  iif/.t'.v  vj  r.aari  ^'^^"fM"^'^  s/.zo'f  y.a/.iu^.^  zav  d'  adcxiu^  xac 
aO£iii<  £:9  T"  r/^9  r.'iTiWf  r;  xut  rj;xij9  dzfT/iiurr^pidy^  6  dr^  raprapnv 
xa/.oUTi-/^  izya.'..  .  ,  -  6i  (f  «^  ()(i:w(7v^  o./'.ariu<!  zyttv  dta  xa 
[LZyzOri  rcjv  ap.iLpzr^iKLrwj^  55  Izpatro/.ca'i  ~<i/./.a^  xac  jizya?.a'?  r^ 
(fifydWi  aocxowi  xai  TzapayoiiuU'i  Ttn/J.ovi  z^etpyatriizxi'.,  rj  a/.X 
una  rmaoza  zoyya-^zi  ovra,  ziiorou^  d  rj  —pairr^xnutTa  p.oipa 
fi'.T.z:  £;9  ZD-j  Tapzapir^^  oOzv  <>u~iiz'  zx^^a'.xiUfT'..'. —  But  those 
whi)  have  livrd  unholily  and  unjustly,  they  bury  in  a 
certain  kind  of  mud  in  Hades,  and  force  them  to  cany 
water  in  a  sieve.  .  .  .  Some  of  the  mytlis  told  of 
Hades,  how  that  every  one  who  arrives  there  must  pay  the 


248  Essays  on  God  and  Man^ 

penalty  of  his  sins,  are,  although  hiughable,  of  some  use,  as 
they  [)rocluce  in  the  mind,  through  constant  thinking,  a  feel- 
ing that  they  ma}'  be  true.  .  .  .  But  in  Hades  we  shall 
have  to  atone  for  all  injustice  here  committed. 
This  was  with  the  gods  the  law  and  always  has  been  and 
ever  will  be,  that  all  those  who  here  live  justly  and  holily, 
shall  on  their  death,  depart  to  the  islands  of  the  blessed, 
there  to  remain  in  all  happiness,  and  freed  from  ever}'  evil ; 
but  that  those  who  here  live  unjustly  and  irreligiously,  will, 
on  their  death,  go  to  the  prison  of  penalty  and  vengeance, 
which  they  call  Tartarus  ;  .  .  .  and  whosoever  shall  ap- 
pear to  be  incorrigible  through  the  magnitude  of  their  sins, 
or  ruined  by  their  many  and  great  sacrilegious  actions,  or 
their  unjust  and  illegal  homicides,  or  other  such  sins,  these 
by  fitting  fate  are  hurled  into  Tartarus,  never  again  to  come 
forth." 

(Plato:  Civitas,  I,  3G3,  330,  3G7  ;  Gorgias,  523  ;  Phtedo,  G2). 
"  Tlie  habitation  of  those  mortals  whose  generation  hath 
lost  its  virtue,  shall  be  in  hell."  (Yedas), 

"  Di,  quibus  imperium  est  animarum,  Umbroeque  silentes, 
Et  chaos,  et  Phlegethon,  loca  nocte  tacentia  late. 
Sit  mihi  fas  audita  loqui ;  sit  numine  vestro 
•   Pandere  res  alta  terra  et  caligine  mersas. 

Ibant  obscuri  sola  sub  nocte  per  urabram, 
Perque  domos  Ditis  vacuas  et  inania  regna: 
Quale  per  incertam  lunam  sub  luce  maligna 
p]st  iter  in  silvis,  ubi  ca'lum  condidit  umbra 
Juppiter,  et  rebus  nox  abstulit  atra  colorem. 
Vestiliuhun  ante  ipsum  pnmisque  in  faucibusOrci 
Luctus  et  ultrices  posuere  cubilia  Cune  ; 


A  Philosophical  Inqnirii  into  the  Principles  of  Uelicjion.  249 

Pallentesqiie  lial)itant  Morbi,  tristisque  Seiiectiis, 
Et  IMetus,  et  malesuatla  Fames,  ac  tiirpis  Egestas, 
Terribiles  visa  foriuii;,  LetunKiuc,  Lal)osqiio  ; 
Tuiii  consaiiguineiis  Lcti  Sopor,  et  mala  lueatis 
Gaudia,  moitil'cruraqiie  adverso  in  limine  licllum, 
Ferrciqiie  Euinenidum  tluilaini,  et  Diseordia  demens, 
Vipereum  criiieni  vitlis  iunexa  cruentis. 

In  medio  ramos  annosaque  braccbia  pandit 
Ulmus  opaca,  ingens,  quam  sedem  Sorania  volgo 

Vaaa  teiiere  ferimt,  foliisquesub  omail)us  baerent. 
Multnqne  pneterca  varianun  monstra  ferarum 
Centauri  in  foribus  stabulant  .Sc3'll<iique  biformes 
Et  eentumgerainus  Briareus  ac  belua  Lornne, 
Horrendum  strideus,  tlammisque  ai'inata  Cliimaera, 
Gorgones  Flarpyiieque  et  forma  tricorporisumbme.  -     -     - 
O  ye  gods,  to  whom  belong  the  empire  of  departed  souls, 
and  ye  silent  shades,  and  Chaos,  and  Phlegethcn,    places 
concealed  in  wide-extending  night,  lend  me  3'our  aid  to  tell 
the  woes  that  I  have  seen!    Let  me  by  aid  divine  reveal  the 
things  buried  in  deep  earth  and  impenetrable  obscurity! 

Beneath  the  earth  wended  the  obscure  ghosts  their  way 
through  the  shady  night,  passing  the  empty  houses  and  the 
uninhabitable  regions  of  Dis.  Here  by  the  barren  light  of  a 
fickle  moon  they  come  to  a  kind  of  way  in  the  midst  of  the 
woods  where  Juppiter  veils  the  heavens  in  shades,  and 
black  night  robs  all  things  of  color.  Before  the  vestibule 
itself,  in  the  very  mouth  of  hell,  Grief  and  the  avenging 
Cares  have  placed  theii  beds ;  the  pale  Diseases  and  sad 
Old- Ago,  and  Fear  and  wasting  Famine,  and  base  Want, 
forms  terrible  to  see,  and  Deatli  and  Pain  are  all  rampant 


250  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

here  ;  on  the  threshhold  is  Death's  half-brother,  Sleep  ;  here 
sta}'  Remorse  and  death-bearing  War ;  here  are  the  iron  beds 
of  the  Furies,  and  here  stay  mad  Discord  witli  hair  bound  in 
blood}'  knots.  In  the  midst  spreads  a  shadowy  and  might}'' 
elm  its  boughs  and  aged  branches,  which  is  said  to  be  the 
abode  of  vain  Dreams  which  hang  from  all  the  leaves  there- 
of. And  many  other  beast-liUe  forms  are  here  found, — 
Centaurs  lodge  before  the  door  and  the  biformed  Scyllae, 
and  the  hundred-armed  Briareus,  and  the  beast  of  Leina  — 
a  hissing  monster,  —  and  Chimera  armed  with  flames,  the 
Gorgons,  and  the  Harpies,  and  the  form  of  the  tricorj)oral 
shade."  (Virgil:  ^neid,  VI,  264-290). 

I:  SITUATION  OF  HELL: 

"By  ourselves  the  lower  regions  of  hell  are  not  supposed 
to  be  a  bare  cavit}',  nor  some  subterranean  sewer  of  the 
world,  but  a  vast  deep  space  in  the  interior  of  the  earth,  and 
a  concealed  recess  in  its  very  bowels." 

(Tertullian  :  De  Anima,  LV). 

Whiston  argued  that  the  comets  are  but  so  many  hells, 
designed  to  carry  lost  souls  from  one  extreme  of  temperature 
to  another, —  first  into  the  lurid  flames  of  the  sun  there  to  be 
scorched,  and  thence  away  far  beyond  the  orbit  of  Saturn  into 
tlie  realms  of  ice  and  darkness,  whence  returning  again  they 
plunge  the  damned  into  the  solar  bath,  only  to  expose  them 
once  more  to  the  cold  and  darkness  of  far  out-ljing  space. 
This  alternate  action,  he  thinks,  is  kept  up  for  ever.  This 
is  a  very  ingenious  hypothesis,  we  must  admit!  Swinden 
on  the  other  hand  argued  that  the  sun  itself  is  hell.  He 
attempted  to  prove  this : 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.   251 

1 :   Because  of  its  great  capacity  for  roastin;^, 
2:  Because  of  its  distance  and  opposition  to  tlie  "  em- 
pj'reum,  which  quadrates  well  with  Dives  seeing 
Al)raliara  afar  off," 
3:  Because  "the  suu  was  the  first  part  of  tlie  visible 
worhl  created,  wliich  agrees  with  tlie  notion  of  its 
being  primarily  intended  or  prepared  to  receive 
the  angels  who  fell," 
4 :  Because  of  the  early  and  almost  universal  idolatry 
paid  to  the  sun. 
Not  a  few  have  argued  that  the   earth  shall  be  the  final 
place  of  punishment,  and  that  this  is  to  begin  at  the  great 
conflagration  spoken  of  in  Scripture.     I  do  not  know  how 
we  shall  deliiie  with  ain'  more  exactness  the  position  of  hell, 
unless  these  earnest  but   deluded  men,  long  since   passed 
away,  shall  come  to  our  assistance  with  the  proof  of  their 
experience ;  and  of  this  I  myself  have  no  expectation. 

II:  DURATION  OF  PUNISHMENT: 

"  It  is  better  for  thee  to  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God 
with  one  eye,  than  having  two  eyes  to  be  cast  into  hell  fire : 
where  the  worm  dieth  not  and  the  fire  is  not  quenched. 
.  .  And  the  third  angel  followed  thein,  saying  with  aloud 
voice.  If  any  man  worship  the  beast  and  his  image,  and  re- 
ceive his  mark  in  his  forehead,  or  in  his  hands,  the  same 
shall  drink  of  the  wine  of  the  wrath  of  God,  which  is  poured 
out  vrithout  mixture  into  the  cup  of  his  indignation  ;  and  he 
shall  be  tormented  with  fire  and  brimstone  in  the  presence  of 
the  holy  angels,  and  in  the  presence  of  the  lamb :  and  the 
smoke  of  their  torment  ascendeth  up  for  ever  and  ever,  and 


252  Essays  on  God  and  31an, 

they  have  no  rest  clay  nor  night.  .  .  .  And  the  devil 
that  deceived  them  was  cast  into  the  lake  of  fire  and  brim- 
stone, where  the  beast  and  the  false  prophets  are,  and  shall 
be  tormented  day  and  night  for  ever  and  ever.  ... 
And  whosoever  was  not  found  written  in  the  book  of  life, 
was  cast  into  the  lake  of  fire." 

(Mark  IX,  47-49;  Rev.  XIV,  11 ;  XX,  10,15). 

"And  what  is  the  end?  Look  over  the  territories  of  the 
orave !  Behold  the  scene  of  punishment  reserved  for  tliem 
wlio  know  not  God,  and  who  obey  not  the  gospel  of  Christ! 
There  will  you  be,  beyond  the  hope  of  mercy  and  of  grace. 
Imagine  the  agony  of  dwelling  where  the  tidings  of  this 
gospel  never  shall  be  heard  again.  Think  of  the  companion- 
ship of  the  fiends,  of  the  blackness  of  the  pit,  of  the  unmin- 
gled  horrors  so  that  even  if  you  could  ask  for  one  drop  of 
water  to  cool  your  tormented  tongue,  even  that  would  be 
denied!  Sinners,  I  ask  you  one  question  before  we  part, 
'  Who  amongst  you  can  dwell  with  the  devouring  fire?  who 
amongst  you  can  dwell  with  everlasting  burning?'  If  there 
be  one  let  him  rise  up  and  tell  us ! 

(Sermon  by  Rev.  James  Parsons). 

"  It  will  be  everlasting  wrath.  It  is  a  quenchless  fire,  a 
worm  that  never  dies.  What  must  it  be  to  endure  the  un- 
mitigated wrath  of  God  for  a  moment,  for  an  hour,  for  a 
week,  for  a  year,  for  a  century,  for  a  thousand  years,  for  a 
million  of  ages !  But  if,  at  that  distance,  there  should  be 
one  gleam  of  hope  appearing  through  the  vista  of  darkness, 
liell  would  cease  to  be  hell ;  hope  would  spring  up ;  and  the 
very  idea  of  the  termination  of  torments  would  sustain  the 
soul  under  it.     But  oh,  eternal  wrath !     Everlasting  ven- 


A  Philosophical  Inqiiiri/  into  the  Principles  of  Peliyion.   253 

geance!  To  look  through  eternity,  and  see  no  resting  place 
under  the  extremit}''  of  torture!  To  be  obliged  to  cr}'  out, 
'  how  long?'  and  to  receive  no  answer  but  '  forever!'  And 
after  millions  of  ages  have  passed,  and  the  question  is  again 
asked,  '  how  long?  '  still  to  receive  no  answer  but  '  forever !' 
Oh,  ray  hearers,  ray  hearers!  you  know  what  it  is  in  this 
world  to  have  the  heaviest  afllictions  lightened  by  t!ie  influ- 
ence of  hope,  the  darkest  scene  cheered  by  a  ray  of  hope. 
But,  I  beseech  you  think  of  the  state  of  suffering  where 
hope  will  go  out,  and  leave  you  to  the  bitterness  of  despair 
forever!"  (Sermon  by  Rev.  J.  A.  James). 

"  But  if  any  persist  in  impiety  to  the  end  of  life,  then  as 
soon  as  the  soul,  which  is  immortal,  departs,  it  shall  pay  the 
penalty  of  its  persistence  in  impiety.  For  even  the  souls 
of  the  impious  are  immortal,  though  perhaps  they  them- 
selves would  wish  them  to  end  with  their  bodies.  But  it  is 
not  so ;  but  they  endure  without  end  the  torments  of  eternal 
fire,  and  to  their  destruction  they  have  not  the  qualit}'  of 
mortality."  (Clement:   Recognitions,  XXVIII). 

With  great  perspicuity  have  the  above  divines  set  forth 
the  woes  of  Tartarus  ;  and  since  Aristotle  tells  us  experience 
is  the  mother  of  all  genuine  information,  the  author  must 
believe  those  divines  had  an  experimental  knowledge  of  the 
woes  of  hell,  b}^  carrying  it  in  their  own  bosoms. 

Ill :     CHARACTER  OF  THE  PUNISHMENT : 

A  report  of  a  visit  to  hell  by  a  young  woman  :  — 
"A  certain  man  received  me,  hateful  in  appearance,  all 
black,  and  his  clothing  exceedingly  filthy  ;  and  he  led  me  away 
to  a  place  where  there  were  many  chasms,  and  a  great  stench 


254  Essa>/s  o)i  God  and  Man, 

and  most  hateful  odor  were  given  forth  thence  ;  and  I  saw 
in  the  chasm  blazing  fire,  and  wheels  of  fire  ran  there,  and 
souls  were  hung  upon  those  wheels,  and  were  dashed  against 
each  other.  And  there  was  there  crying  and  great  lamen- 
tation, and  there  was  none  released.  And  he  brought  me  to 
another  chasm,  and  I  bent  down  and  saw  mud,  and  worms 
spouting  forth,  and  souls  wallowing  there,  and  a  great 
snashing:  of  teeth  was  heard  thence  from  them.  He  showed 
me  another  chasm,  into  which  I  bent  down  and  saw  souls 
hung  up,  some  by  the  tongue,  some  by  the  hair,  some  b\' 
the  hands,  some  by  the  feet,  head  downwards,  and  smoked 
with  smoke  and  sulphur.  Again  leading  me  away,  he 
showed  me  a  cavern,  exceedingly  dark,  exhaling  a  great 
stench ;  and  many  souls  were  peeping  out  thence,  wishing 
to  get  some  share  of  the  air  but  their  keepers  would  not  let 
them  peep  out."     (Acts  of  the  Holy  Ai)Ostle,  St.  Thomas). 

The  author  does  not  doubt  that  this  report  is  as  authen- 
tic as  it  is  consistent:  ''  many  souls  were  peeping  out;  but 
their  "keepers  would  not  let  them  peep  out." 

A  report  of  a  visit  to  Tartarus  by  Esdras : 

"And  he  gave  me  Michael,  and  Gabriel,  and  other  thir- 
ty-four angels  ;  and  I  went  down  eighty-five  steps,  and  they 
brought  me  down  five-hundred  steps,  and  I  saw  a  fiery 
throne  and  an  old  man  sitting  upon  it,  and  his  judgment 
was  merciless.  And  again  they  took  me  down  thirty  steps, 
and  I  there  saw  boilings-up  of  fire  and  in  them  there  was  a 
multitude  of  sinners.  And  they  took  me  down  lower  many 
steps,  which  I  could  not  measure ;  and  I  there  saw  old  men 
and  fiery  pivots  turning  in  their  ears.  And  they  took  me 
down  again  other  five-hundred  steps,  and  I  there  saw  the 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  rrimiiihs  of  Itelidlon.   '2bo 

worm  that  sleeps  not  ami  lire  l>;iriiiiig  iij)  llie-  siniKr>.  And 
they  took  me  clown  to  the  lowest  part  of  destruetion,  and 
I  saw  there  the  twelve  plagues  of  the  ali3ss.  I  saw  a  man 
hanging  u\)  by  the  eyelids,  and  the  angels  kept  scourging 
him.  And  1  saw  a  man  Ixnmd  with  iron  chains.  And  I 
saw  a  woman  hanging  and  four  wild  beasts  sucking  her 
breasts.  And  1  saw  there  a  man  hanging  by  the  skull. 
And  they  took  mc  lower  down  into  Tartarus,  and  I  saw 
there  all  the  sinners  lamenting  and  weeping  and  mourning 
bitterly."  (Revelation  of  Esdras). 

A  description  of  the  sufferings  in  hell  given  by  a  Catho- 
lic priest,  the  Rev.  J.  Furniss,  C.  S.  S.  R.,  and  published 
by  the  permission  of  his  Superiors: 

"■See!  on  tlie  middle  of  that  red-hot  floor  stands  a  girl; 
she  looks  about  sixteen  years  old.  Her  feet  are  bare.  She 
has  neither  stockings  nor  shoes.  Listen  !  She  speaks.  She 
says  I  have  been  standing  on  this  red-hot  floor  for  j'cars. 
Day  and  night  my  only  standing-i)lace  has  been  this  red  hot 
floor.  Look  at  my  burnt  and  l)leeding  feet.  Let  me  go  off 
this  burning  floor,  only  for  one  single  short  moment. 
The  fourth  dungeon  is  the  boiling  kettle,  ...  in  the 
middle  of  it  there  is  a  boy  .  .  .  His  e^'es  are  burning 
like  two  buining  coals.  Two  long  flames  come  out  of  his 
ears  ....  Sometimes  he  opens  his  mouth  and  blaz- 
ing fire  rolls  out  ....  But  listen !  there  is  a  sound 
like  a  kettle  boiling  ....  The  blood  is  boiling  in  the 
scalded  veins  of  that  boy.  The  brain  is  boiling  and  bub- 
bling in  his  head.  The  marrow  is  boiling  in  his  bones  . 
The  fifth  dungeon  is  the  red-hot  oven  ....  The  lit- 
tle child  is  in  this  red-hot  oven.     Hear  how  it  screams  to 


256  Essays  on   God  and  Man, 

come  out.  See  hcv  it  turns  and  twists  itself  about  in  the 
fire.  It  beats  its  bead  against  the  roof  of  the  oven.  It 
stamps  its  little  feet  on  the  floor." 

The  foregoing  exact  picture  of  hell  and  its  inhabitants 
was  given  in  tract  form,  and  published  but  a  short  time 
ago  bj'  Duffy,  in  Dublin  and  London.  I  am  sure  the 
world  should  be  greatly  obliged  to  this  priest  for  such  infor- 
mation. However,  a  few  maj-  be  inclined  to  class  this 
description  with  other  such  priestly  ravings.  For  my  own 
part,  I  think  it  were  a  blessing  to  the  children  for  whom 
this  tract  was  written,  if  its  author  had  been  sent  to,  and 
permanently  confined  in,  the  place  he  so  graphically  and 
particularly  describes. 

Priestly     descriptions    continued : 

"  Go  my  hearers,  to  the  brink  of  eternit}' ;  contemplate 
in  imaginalion  the  scenes  of  that  horrible  pit;  contemplate 
the  worm  that  dieth  not;  contemplate  the  fire  that  has 
been  prepared  for  the  devil  and  his  angels ;  contemplate 
the  blackness  of  darkness ;  contemplate  tlie  smoke  of  tor- 
ment that  ascendeth  up  for  ever  and  ever. 

(From  a  sermon  by  Rev.  J.  Parsons). 

Accounts  given  by  Scotch  ministers  of  the  sufferings  in 
hell: 

"  There  were  great  fires  and  men  roasted  in  them  and 
then  cast  into  rivers  of  cold  water,  and  then  into  boiling  wa- 
ter;   others  hung  up  by  the  tongues."     (Rev.  R.  Wodrow). 

"Scorched  in  hell-fire,  and  hear  the  howling  of  their  fel- 
low-prisoners, and  see  the  ugly  devils,  the  bloody  scorpions, 
with  which  Satan  lasheth  miserable  souls." 

(Rutherford.) 


A  Pkilosopltifitl  In'jin'r;/  into  the  Principlefi  of  Jie!'(j'Oii.    257 

''Tongues,  lungs,  liver,  bones  and  all,  sliall  lioil  and  fry 
in  a  toiluriiig  fire.  (Rutherford). 

''They  will  be  universal  torments,  ever}'  part  of  the 
cieatuif  l)ciiig  torracntcd  in  that  flame.  'When  one  is  cast 
into  a  fiery  furnace,  the  Ore  makes  its  way  into  the  very  bowels, 
and  leaves  no  member  untouched:  what  i)art  then  can  have 
ease,  when  the  damned  swim  in  a  lake  of  lire  l>urning  with 
brimstone?  "  (Boston). 

"  AN'hile  worms  are  spoiling  with  thy  bones,  the  devil 
shall  make  pastime  of  thy  pains."  (Abernethy). 

"  See  the  poor  wretches  lying  in  bundles  boiling  eternally 
in  that  stream  of  brimstone."  (Ilalyburton). 

Thus  did  the  Scotch  clergy  terrify  their  hearers,  in  the 
seventeenth  century,  into  abject  submission  to  their  tyrannj^ ; 
thus  to-day  are  fools  frigliteued  and  move<l  hither  and 
thither  at  the  will  of  the  fanatical  knave  who  lills  tlie  pulpit, 
and  draws  the  portrait  of  a  god  that  exists  only  in  his  own 
heart  drunken  with  pride,  ignorance,  and  superstition. 

Of  such  persons  the  words  of  Catherine  and  Polonius 
rightly  portray  the  characters: — 

"  ' Tis  too  much  proved,  that,  with  devotion's  visage, 

And  pious  action,  we  do  sugar  o'er 

The  devil  himself 

Ye  have  angels'  faces,  but  Heaven  knows  3'our  hearts." 
(Shakcspcre:   Hamlet;  King  Henry  A'HI). 

IV :     rXIVERSALITY  OF  THE  SUFFERINGS  : 

Ir  is  true  there  are  found  individual  theologians,  looked 
upon  with  susi)icion  l)y  all  the  ignorant  clerg}',  wiio  do  not 
accept  the  teaching,  that  outside  of  the  clmrch  none  can  be 


258  Ess((;/s  on  Cod  and  Mnn^ 

saved  ;  but  that  such  teachings  have  always  prevailed,  and  do 
prevail  to-day,  none  will  for  a  moment  doubt.  Augustine 
teaches  in  the  most  unqualified  terms  the  eternal  damna- 
tion of  all  the  heathen,  of  all  unbaptised  children,  and  of  all 
those,  whether  children  or  adults,  whether  baptised  or 
unbaptised,  whom  God  has  not  foreordainded  from  all  eter- 
nity to  eternal  life.  "To  the  jaundiced  eye  of  the  theo- 
logians, all  nature  seemed  stricken  and  forlorn,  and  its 
brightness  and  beauty  suggested  no  ideas  but  those  of 
deception,  and  of  sin,  Tiie  redbreast,  according  to  one 
popular  legend,  was  commissioned  by  the  Deity  to  carr}-  a 
drop  of  water  to  the  souls  of  unl>aptised  infants  in  hell,  and 
its  breast  was  singed  in  piercing  the  flames." 

(Lecky:   Ilist.  of  Euroi).  Morals,  II,  224). 

"  AVhat  transubstantiatioa  is  in  the  order  of  reason  the 
Augustinian  doctrine  of  the  damnation  of  unbaptised  infants, 
and  the  Calvinistic  doctrine  of  reprobation,  are  in  the  order 
of  morals.  Of  these  doctrines  it  is  not  too  much  to  say  that 
they  surpass  in  atrocity  any  tenets  that  have  been  admitted 
into  any  pagan  creed  .  .  .  Such  teaching  is  in  fact 
dosmonisra,    and   daemonism    in    its    most   extreme    form." 

(Il)i:    I,  9(;). 

"  Calvin  voulait  etre  aussi  absoUi.  Loin  d'  excuser 
ses  amljitieuses  pretentions,  sa  doctrine  porte  1'  cm- 
preinte  de  la  secheresse  de  son  ame.  Poussant  a  1' 
extreme  les  principes  de  saint  Augustine  sur  la  pre- 
destination, il  se  fait  un  Dieu  imi)itoyable,  plus  cruel 
que  le  destin  antique ;  car  ce  Dieu  cree  volontairement  le 
mal.  II  cree  les  homes  pour  sauver  le  petit  nombre  et 
daraner  le  grand,  sans  que  les  [)redestines  de  1'  enfer  puis- 


A  Philosophical  Tnr/uirj/  into  tho  Principles  of  Relifjion.   'l^J 

sent  reagir  contre  le  sort  qui  les  attend ;  car  ils  n'ont  point 
de  libre  arbitre. — c'cst  la  religion  de  la  haine  entce  sur  la 
loi  d'  amour.— Calvin  wished  in  all  tilings  to  be  absolute. 
Far  from  excusing  his  ambitious  pretensions,  we  say  his 
doctrine  bears  wilh  it  the  acuteness  of  his  mind.  Pushing 
to  its  logical  extreme  the  doctrine  of  St.  Augustine  on  pre- 
destination, he  created  a  god  unmerciful,  and  more  cruel 
than  the  destiny  of  the  ancients ;  for  this  god  is  even  tlie 
author  of  evil.  He  creates  men  to  save  the  few  and  damn 
the  multitude.  But  for  this  those  predestined  to  hell 
might  seek  to  work  against  the  fate  which  asvaits  them  ;  but 
they  have  no  free  will  of  their  own.  This  is  a  religion  of 
hatred  grafted  ui)on  the  law  of  love," 

(Demogeot:  Hist,  de  la  Litterature  Francaise,  p.  298). 

"Those  two  points  are  to  be  severally  remarked,  namely, 
that  we  being  in  all  parts  of  our  nature  defiled  and  cor- 
rupted, are  already  for  such  corruption  only  wortliily  held 
condemned,  and  convicted  before  God ;  yea  and  very 
infants  themselves  bring  their  own  damnation  with  them 
from  their  mother's  womb,  who  although  they  have  not  yet 
brought  forth  the  fruits  of  their  iniquit}',  yet  have  the  seed 
thereof  inclosed  within  them,  j'ea  tlicir  whole  nature  is  a 
certain  seed  of  sin,  and  therefore  it  cannot  be  otherwise 
than  hateful  and  abominable  to  God."  (Calvin). 

"  By  the  decree  of  God  for  the  manifestation  of  His 
glory,  some  men  and  angels  arc  predestinated  unto  everlast- 
ing life,  and  others  preordained  to  everlasting  death.  These 
angels  and  men,  thus  predestinated  and  preordained,  are  par- 
ticularly and  unchangeably  designed  [designate]  ;  ami  lUeir 
number  is  so  certain  and  definite  that  it  cannot  be  either 


2G0  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

increased  or  diminished.  Those  of  mankind  [not  pre- 
destinated unto  life  ]  God  was  pleased,  according  to  the 
unsearchable  counsel  of  His  own  will,  whereb}'  He  extend- 
eth  or  withholdeth  mercy  as  He  plcaseth,  for  the  glory  of 
His  sovereign  power  over  His  creatures,  to  pass  by,  and  to 
ordain  them  to  dishonor  and  wrath  for  their  sin,  to  the 
praise  of  His  glorious  justice."  {The  Westminster  Confes- 
sion of  Faith,  1647,  as  given  in  Schaff' s  Creeds  of  Christen- 
dom, iii,  608). 

"  It  is  evident  that  God  has  witnessed  his  wrath  against 
the  sins  of  infants  not  only  by  hating  their  sins,  but  even 
their  persons  also,  and  this  not  only  by  inflicting  temporal 
punishment,  but  even  by  casting  them  into  hell.  Many  in- 
fants have  been  vessels  of  wrath  and  firebrands  of  hell." 

(Hildersham). 

"  Every  man  who  is  condemned,  is  condemned  for  original 
as  well  as  actual  sin ;  and  many  thousands  of  infants  for 
original  sin  only."  (Burgess). 

"Elect  infants  dying  in  infancy  are  regenerated,  others 
not  elected  never  truly  come  to  Christ,  and  therefore  can- 
not be  saved."  (Westminster  Confession  of  Faith). 

"  Statuunt  infantes  quosdam,  absoluto  Dei  decreto  re- 
jectos,  non  regeneri,  etiamsi  millies  baptizentur.  .  .  Non 
omnes  qui  aqua  baptizantur,  consequi  eo  ipsogratiam  Christi 
aut  donum  fidei,  sed  tantum  electos.  .  .  .  Electos  et 
regenitos  non  posse  fidem  et  Spiritum  Sanctum  araittere  aut 
damnarij  quamvis  omnis  generis  grandia  peccata  et  flagitia 
committant.  —  They  affirm  that  those  infants  who  are  reject- 
ed by  the  eternal  decree  of  God,  are  not  regenerated,  even  if 
baptized  a  thousand  times ;  for  not  all  who  are  baptized  with 


^1  ]'Jtilos(>ijhical  Inqnirtj  into  the  Principles  of  RelUjion.   261 

water  are  therefore  able  to  follow  the  grace  of  Christ  or  the 
gift  of  faitli,  l»ut  only  so  many  as  are  among  the  elect. 
On  the  other  hand  as  many  as  are  among  the  elect  and  are 
regenerated,  cannot  lose  their  faith  nor  the  Holy  Spirit,  nor 
can  they  be  damned,  it  matters  not  however  great  the  sins  be 
they  commit,  nor  what  may  bo  their  natui'e." 
(LocITheo.  IV,  8in,  Jen;e,  Hn;'. ;  Francke's  Libri  Symbol. 
Eccl.     Lutheranjii,  Pars  III,  Append,  p.  119). 

Some  may  wish  to  know  just  what  is  meant  l)y  i)redestina- 
tionand  election.  For  the  benefit  ot  such  we  will  let  the 
great  Presbyterian  Chalmers  tell  us: 

"  I  am  moving  along  a  chain  which  hath  one  end  certainly 
fixed  in  the  eternit}'  that  is  past,  and  another  is  certainly 
fixed  in  the  eternity  that  is  to  follow.  If  the  doctrine  of 
predestination  be  true,  as  I  believe  it  to  be,  then  it  extends 
to  all  the  processes  of  human  life ;  and  in  virtue  of  it,  every 
career  of  human  exertion  hath  its  sure  result,  and  must 
terminate  in  one  certain  fulfilment  that  is  absolute  and 
irreversible.  It  is  not  the  state  of  your  future  eternity 
alone,  that  is  decided  hy  it ;  but  the  state  of  your  fortune 
and  family  in  this  world. 

The  consistcMit  predestinai-ian  knows  that  ever}-  step  in  the 
series  of  a  believer's  history,  is  as  irrevocably  sure  as  its 
termination  ;  and  it  is  not  for  him  to  break  up  the  alliance 
between  holiness  in  time  and  happiness  in  eternity.  The 
phenomena  of  thinking  and  feeling  and  willing  and  doing  in 
the  spiritual  department  of  nature,  do  as  surely  result  from 
the  previous  eonstitiUion  which  has  been  given  to  it,  as  any 
of  the  varied  phenomena  in  the  material  department  result 
from  its   constitution.     The  history  of  our  species  may  be 


262  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

regarded  as  one  vast  progression,  carried  forward  by  definite 
footsteps;  and  willi  tlie  state  of  eacli  individual  as  surely 
fixed  at  every  moment  of  time  by  tlie  laws  of  mental  nature, 
as  is  the  situation  of  any  planet  above,  or  of  any  particle  of 
dust  below  by  the  physical  laws  which  are  established  in  the 
material  world."  (Chalmers:  Lectures  on  Romans,  C,l,  72). 

CONCLUDING  REMARKS:  — 

Convinced  that  if  there  is  a  God,  he  must  be  the  origin  of 
all  force,  the  author  of  all  that  is,  and  the  power  apart  from 
which  all  other  poweis  must  cease  to  be,  the  reasonable  mind, 
believing  in  the  existence  of  God,  cannot  for  a  moment  be- 
lieve in  the  existence  of  an  evil  principle,  or  of  Ahri- 
man,  the  god  of  evil.  To  such  a  mind  it  is  suffi- 
ciently clear  that  from  the  pettiest  tort  to  the  high- 
est felon}',  ignorance  and  weakness  are  the  causes.  The 
hater  would  not  hate,  the  slanderer  would  not  slander,  the 
thief  would  not  steal,  the  murderer  would  not  murder,  if 
tlicy  knew  the  real  result  of  such  actions  on  themselves,  and 
had  the  power  of  doing  otherwise.  This  weakness  spoken  of 
may  be  constitutional  or  inherited,  and,  if  so,  must  be 
largely  irremediable  ;  or  it  may  Ije  the  general  product  of  in- 
numerable and  infinitesimal  factors  of  misdirected  energy, 
in  other  words,  the  sum  total  of  an  innumerable  series  the 
different  terms  of  which,  as  they  ascend,  represent  tlie  weak- 
ness in  a  more  and  more  aggravated  form.  In  due  time 
such  generated  weakness  becomes  constitutional  and  sub- 
ject to  the  laws  of  heredity.  "  Wlien  states  of  mind,  in 
no  respects  innate  or  instinctive,  have  been  frequently  re- 
peated, the  mind  seems  to  acquire  a  greatly  increased  facil- 


A  Philosopfti'iil  JiKjin'r;/  into  tlif  Pn'iicij'les  of  lielifjion.  2C.'i 

ity  of  passing  into  those  stales  ;  and  this  increased  faeihty 
must  be  owing  to  some  cliange  of  a  physical  character  in 
tlie  organic  constitution  of  the  brain.  There  is  also  consid- 
ciable  evidence  that  such  modification  can  in  many  cases  be 
transmitted  by  inheritance."  (Mill). 

AVhen  the  cause  of  wrong-doing  cannot  be  referred  to 
such  weakness,  it  must  be  referred  to  ignorance.  Says 
Aristotle : 

Nobody  wishes  for  himself  what  he  believes  to  be  evil." 

(Eud.  Eth.  II,  7,  5). 

"'To'.rii'^  fj-Y^,/  uyyii'.a^'   Xtyw^  ay  z:^   toj>  d'j.a/iTr^;j.'/.T(o./    a;r;a>    i>o/. 

uy  il'iooo'.ro  —  Thirdly,  sliould  any  one  hold  that  ignorance 
is  a  cause  of  sin,  it  would  be  reasonable  enough." 

(Plato:  Leges,  IX,  8G3). 
Unreasonably  sui)posing  he  will  escape  punishment,  the 
wrong-doer  foolishly  commits  the  deed  ;  or  unwisel}'  sup- 
posing he  will  reap  a  benefit,  he  acts  detrimentally  to  his 
own  interests.  Whether  in  the  moral  or  in  the  civil  world, 
ignorance  is  that  through  which  the  power  for  good,  be- 
comes productive  of  evil.  Since  we  affirm  that  God  is  the 
source  of  all  [)ower,  it  must  follow  that  every  power  in  man 
must  be  a  jjower  for  good  ;  its  improper  use  does  not  change 
the  power  itself,  but  its  mode  of  use  only.  The  powers  in 
man  are  all  for  good,  near  or  remote  ;  but  when  misdirected, 
they  result  in  the  destruction  of  the  subject  or  in  the  subse- 
quent detcrit)ration  of  his  descent.  Should  some  one  say  the 
tact  of  such  weakness  and  the  possibility  of  such  wrong  use, 
are  in  themselves  evils,  and  that  in  the  case  of  man  they  be- 
gan with  his  so-called  fall ;  I  would  answer  that  such  weak- 


264  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

iiess  and  such  possibility  ave  not  in  themselves  evils,  but 
that  the  one  is  the  necessary  accompaniment  of  moral  free- 
dom, which  is  necessary  to  personal  strife,  which  is  neces- 
sary to  the  development  of  character,  which  is  the  very  end 
of  man's  existence  ;  and  that  the  other  to  a  greater  or  less 
degree,  must  forever  inhere  in  every  finite  existence.  Sin 
may  be  said  to  be  a  faikire  to  adjust  one's  internal  world 
to  his  external  world,  so  as  to  bring  about  the  highest  good. 
Tliis  failure,  incurred  through  ignorance  and  weakness,  is 
the  result  of  a  strife  which  is  eternal  and  universal ;  but 
which  instead  of  an  evil,  as  is  generally  believed,  is  a  good. 
Speaking  of  this  in  "Nature,"  26  April,  1888,  says  Sir 
William  R.  Grove,  F.  R.  S. :  "Antagonism  pervades  all 
things  ;  it  is  not  the  baneful  thing  which  many  consider  it ; 
it  is  a  necessity  of  existence,  an  1  of  the  organism  of  the  uni- 
verse ;  motion  and  life  cannot  go  on  without  it ;  it  is  not  a 
mere  casual  adjunct  of  Nature,  for  without  it  there  would 
be  no  Nature ;  it  is  inevitably  associated  with  unorganised 
matter;  with  organised  matter,  and  with  sentient  beings." 
Thus,  under  rational  investigation,  the  reason  for  the  exis- 
tence of  a  principle  of  evil,  or  of  a  personal  devil, 
the  god  Aliriman,  disappears  as  snow  before  the 
sun  ;  and  with  its  disa[)pearance,  all  the  props  upon  which 
different  arguments  have  been  ignorantly  built  up  in  proof 
of  the  Devil's  existence,  crumble  away.  But  although  the 
liberal  and  scholarly  mind  needs  no  argument  in  disproof  of 
the  existence  of  a  personal  devil,  although  the  scientist  must 
laugh  at  the  very  mention  of  the  Devil's  name,  yet  it  is  not 
at  all  probable  that  the  Devil  will  die  as  yet  of  starvation.  We 
have  too  many  in  heart,  in  mind,  in  purpose  as  was  Moses, 


A  Philosophical  Inquiry  into  the  Principles  of  Religion.  2G5 

for  us  to  expect  any  such  early  victory  of  truth  over  error. 
In  the  words  of  Robert  Brudenell  Carter,  in  tlie  "  Reign  of 
Queen  Victoria:"  "The  superstition  whicli  Moses  turned 
to  a  good  account,  constitutes  a  powerful  agency  even  in  our 
own  times."  "While  it  appears  to  the  advantage  of  revival- 
ists, missionaries,  and  preachers,  to  have  the  Devil  f;it, 
hale,  and  la-arty,  they  will  not  cease  to  feed  him  on  the  best 
of  tho  land ;  nor  while  they  do  this,  will  the  ignorant  cease 
to  believe  in  his  existence. 

Knowing  that  belief  in  the  existence  of  a  principle  of  evil 
is  one  of  the  man}^  surviving  superstitions  ;  knowing  that  on 
the  existence  of  a  principle  of  evil,  depends  the  existence  of 
the  Devil,  the  god  Ahriman,  as  the  king  of  the  infernal 
regions ;  knowing  that  on  the  existence  of  such  Gehenna, 
depend  the  eternal  torments  of  the  damned,  and  all 
considerations  as  to  the  locality  of  hell,  to  the  Uberal 
and  scholarly  mind  all  these  appear  but  a  priestly 
fabric  piled  ui)on  a  foundation  as  worthless  as  in 
the  past  the  priests  themselves  have  been,  and  as  they 
are  to-day  to  no  small  extent.  "  "What  follows?  Must  we 
reject  these  traditions  as  old  wives'  fables?  I  answer,  no  ; 
but  we  must  accept  them  as  parables."  (Laing).  The 
fall  of  man,  though  certainly  false  when  taught  generically 
or  as  entailed  on  the  race  through  the  disobedience  of  Adam, 
is  equally  true  when  taught  as  happening  in  the  individual 
as  the  direct  result  of  his  own  wilful  or  ignorant  transgres- 
.sion.  I  am  not  conscious  of,  nor  do  I  acknowledge,  any 
guilt  of  Adam  entailed  on  me ;  I  am  conscious  and  I  do  ac- 
knowledge that  "  I  have  left  undone  those  things  I  ought  to 
have  done,  and  have  done  those  things  I  ought  not  to  have 


266  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

done"  ;  and  that,  because  of  this,  I  have  fallen.  This  has 
every  son  of  man  done,  and  this  confession  may  every  son 
of  man  make.  That  I  may  "  arise  and  ,e;o  to  my  P'ather," 
I  do  not  believe  there  is  need  of  atonement  to  turn  away 
the  wrath  of  God,  (which  I  consider  is  a  superstitious 
and  wicked  belief)  but  to  direct  and  establish  my  life  in  the 
right  path.  Whatever  assists  in  making  accord  our  ideas 
with  the  matters  we  investigate,  is  in  the  highest  sense  an 
atonement.  All  tlie  great  moralists  and  teachers  of  the 
world  have  been  setting  at  one  our  ideas  and  tlie  things  we  con- 
template ;  they,  therefore,  make  atonement  for  us.  Whether 
Christ  was  God  incarnate,  the  Son  of  God,  or  a  son  of  God,  we 
may  undoubtedly  see  in  him  a  teacher  sent  from  God  to  help  us 
work  out  the  end  for  which  we  are  created ;  thus  helping  to 
make  us  one  with  ourselves,  one  with  others,  one  with  Na- 
ture, and  one  with  Nature's  God,  Jesus  Christ  is,  therefore, 
our  atonement.  He  taught  the  truth,  lived  it,  and  finally 
died  for  it.  Thus  sacrificing  himself  for  the  truth,  Jesus 
Christ  may  truthfully  be  said  to  be  our  sacrifice,  since  the 
truth  alone  can  save  us.  "  Whatsoever  a  man  soweth,  that 
shall  he  reap,"  is  a  sentence  whose  truth  Nature  herself  as- 
serts: we  cannot  deny  it.  We  may  be  certain,  therefore, 
that  for  every  sin  man  commits,  he  must  pay  the  penalty. 
Jesus  Christ  points  out  the  way,  the  truth,  and  the  life ;  but 
Nature  herself  assures  us  that  for  every  sin  man  commits  he 
himself  must  make  his  own  atonement.  And  where  Nature 
speaks,  I  myself  will  say  "  thus  saith  the  Lord." 

If  man  is  immortal,,  the  life  that  shall  be,  is  but  the  con- 
tinuation of  the  life  that  is.  There  is  no  break  in  the  line 
of  existence,  althouLdi  in  death  it  fades  fiom  our  view.     The 


A  Philosophiial  JiK/uir;/  into  the  Principles  of  Relifjion.   207 

character  which  we  possess  at  death,  is  tliat  wiiich  we  carry 
with  us  into  the  unseen  world.  And  as  fiod  is  one  and 
nature  one,  whatever  wrong-doing  we  may  not  have  atoned 
for  before,  we  certainly  shall  atone  for  after,  death.  In 
this  world  the  proof  of  temporary  damnation  and  the  dis- 
proof of  permanent  damnation,  are  conclusive;  but  tempor- 
ary damnation  aftei-  death  for  whatever  we  may  not  have 
atoned  for  before  death,  is  no  more  certain  than  that  eter- 
nal damnation  is  a  lie,  a  priestly  superstition.  The  damna- 
tion of  the  future  state,  is  as  tlie  damnation  of  the  present 
state, —  cast  out  from  the  better  society,  incapacitated  for 
nobler  activities,  and  stricken  with  a  sense  of  loss,  shame 
and  remorse,  —  the  wicked  reap  what  they  have  sowed.  In 
this  world  the  subject  may  rise  out  of  such  damnation  b3' 
gradually  seeking  and  approaching  a  purer  life,  and  as 
gradually  overcoming  his  downward  tendencies.  As  in  this 
world  so  in  the  world  to  come,  the  possibilities  of  higher 
activities  will  ever  lie  l)efore  us.  There  is  the  same  Univer- 
sal Life  and  Love  in  which  we  must  forever  live  ;  the  same 
Source  of  divine  energy  to  purify  and  strengthen.  As  in 
this  world  so  in  that,  our  bliss  can  never  be  so  great  as 
leaves  no  room  for  greater ;  our  woe  can  never  be  so  deep  as 
leaves  no  room  for  deeper.  But  deep  and  wide  as  God's 
universe  is,  it  is  neither  deei)  nor  wide  enough  to  hide  from 
his  gaze  the  lowest  of  his  creatures;  nor  make  unheard  the 
faintest  cr}-  of  a  i)enitcnt  soul.  And  since  the  finite  must  of 
necessity  remain  imperfect  forever,  and  therefore  forever 
need  salvation  ;  God  remains  forever  the  Eternal  Saviour, 
no  less  than  Eternal  Father.  The  ways  of  heaven  and  hell 
are  in   the   conscious   spirit.     Says    the    Hindu   Vermana: 


268  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

"  The  source  of  final  happiness  is  inherent  in  the  breast;  he 
is  a  fool  who  seeks  it  elsewhere.  He  is  like  the  shepherd 
who  searched  for  the  sheep  which  was  in  his  bosom." 

The  religions  of  the  world  are  many ;  and  each  one,  the 
Christian  no  less  than  others,  is  in  unstable  equilibrium, 
top-heavy,  tumbling  over,  tlirough  the  huge  and  ever-in- 
creasing mass  of  senseless  dogma  erected  b}'  cunning  priests 
upon  a  very  insufficient  and  limited  foundation.  No  matter 
what  his  faith  or  cult,  the  priest  will  sacrifice,  propitiate, 
preach,  and  pray,  or  threaten  with  damnation,  as  his  inter- 
ests may  require.  As  the  leaves  of  the  tree  are  moved  by 
the  breath  of  heaven,  so  is  the  priesthood  moved  hither  and 
thither  by  the  pressure  of  self-interest.  In  the  words  of 
Navarette:  "The  excellence  and  power  of  the  gold  of 
Ophir  cannot  be  described,  he  who  possesses  it,  does  what 
he  will  in  this  world ;  nay,  it  even  enables  him  to  draw  souls 
from  purgatory  to  paradise."  Orthodox,  heterodox,  infi- 
del, atheist,  and  the  many  other  epithets  universally  known 
and  used,  are  each  and  all  the  offspring  of  fervid  priests 
raging  to  advance  their  own  interests.  All  are  orthodox ; 
all  are  heterodox ;  orthodox  among  tliemselves,  heterodox 
among  others.  To  the  Brahmin,  the  Buddhist,  and  the 
Mahometan,  no  less  than  to  the  Christian,  the  followers  of 
strange  faiths  are  all  infidels.  Each  alike  lays  claim  to  the 
truth,  eacli  alike  lays  claim  to  universal  and  indisputable 
sway,  each  alike  lays  claim  to  divine  and  exclusive  author- 
ity ;  and  for  the  faith,  as  each  one  holds  it,  is  each  alike 
prepared  to  teach,  instruct,  resist,  restrain,  compel,  bind, 
anathematise,  scourge,  torture,  kill,  and  damn.  The  his- 
tory of  all  religions.  Christian  no  less  than  others,  is  one  of 


-1  Philosophical  Iitijairi/  int<)  ihn  Principles  of  lieh'gion.   209 

dissension  within  and  murder  wilboul ;  and  all  this  evil  is 
the  direct  result  of  piiestly  arrogance  in  Iniilding  towers  of 
Babel  upon  foundations  whose  strength  and  area  were 
barely  sufficient  to  support  an  Indian  wigwara.  These 
things  once  troulded  nie  ;  they  trouble  me  no  more.  If  we 
would  know  the  truth  eternal,  the  revelation  of  God  through 
nature,  we  must  return  to  the  nuclei  around  which  tht-  dif- 
ferent religions  have  grown  u[).  We  can  do  this  by  a  com- 
parison of  the  many  and  different  faiths  and  cults,  cancel- 
ling every  term  not  common  to  all.  We  shall  thus  arrive  at 
a  religion  universal,  eternal,  natural,  and  true  as  God  ami 
nature  are  true.  Terms  not  common  to  all,  representing 
peculiarities  of  faiths,  may  be  kept  as  useful  ornaments,  or 
as  adapted  to  our  civilization,  or  as  more  agreeable  fo  our 
race,  or  as  the  customs  of  our  forefathers;  but  in  no  case 
should  they  be  regarded  as  essentials  of  true  religion. 

Since  religion  first  found  a  lodging-place  in  the  human 
heart,  no  faith  has  caused,  none  can  cause,  greater  diversi- 
ties and  conflicts  of  opinion  than  the  Christian  religion  ;  and 
the  reason  for  such  diversity  and  conflict  is  apparent  to  every 
thinking  mind.  These  things  also  once  troubled  me ;  they 
trouble  me  no  moi*c.  As  the  fool  may  talk  of  matters  of 
which  none  but  the  fool  can  k  :ow  an3'thing,  so  none  but 
ignorant  priests  will  talk  of  those  matters  of  faith  foi' 
which  the  church  has  raged,  womankind  been  made  widows  ; 
infants,  fatherless;  the  trees  of  the  forest,  stakes  around 
which  the  fires  should  consume  the  writhing  victims ;  and 
the  rivers  of  the  earth,  streams  of  blood. 

The  groundwork  of  religions  is  true  and  eternal,  natural 
and    attractive ;    the   priestly  additions  of  all  religions  are 


270  Essays  on  God  and  Man, 

irrational,  uunatmal,  ami,  therefore,  repulsive.  To  con- 
vert a  people  to  a  faith,  countless  millions  are  spent;  to 
hold  them  after  conversion,  the  millions  must  be  multiplied. 
Even  after  all  such  expenditure,  the  air  we  breathe  is  satur- 
ated with  so-called  unbelief.  The  priest  has  succeeded  in 
leading  his  converts  to  outward  conformity,  only  afterwards 
to  find  them  inwardly  honey-combed  with  scepticism.  While 
their  reason  was  manacled,  they  passively  acquiesced  in 
unreasonable  dogmas  ;  but  when  the  manacles  fell  off,  reason 
asserting  herself,  they  found  it  impossible  to  believe.  This 
fact  itself  suffices  to  make  the  liberal  and  scholarly  mind  not 
a  little  suspicious  of  the  reasonable  character  of  such  faith, 
even  were  there  no  other  objections.  Nor  does  such  a  mind 
in  order  to  explain  the  action  and  spread  of  Christianity, 
see  the  need  of  any  other  than  natural  causes :  for  whether 
he  considers  the  preaching  missionary,  or  the  zealous  propa- 
gandist ;  the  sacrificing  priest,  or  the  consecrating  bishop  ; 
the  oratory  of  the  pulpit,  or  the  prayers  of  the  chancel ;  the 
anathematizing  pope,  or  the  raving  revivalist ;  the  tears  and 
groans  of  the  penitent,  or  the  ecstasies  of  the  convert ;  or 
the  effect  of  any  or  all  of  these  activities  upon  the  people 
in  general, —  the  critical  inquirer  finds  no  ground  for  infer- 
ring or  postulating  the  interference  of  supernatural  powers. 
For,  first,  he  knows  that  similar  zeal,  activities,  effects,  and 
phenomena  accompany  the  workings  of  every  religion,  Chris- 
tian and  non-Christian ;  and,  second,  he  finds  no  more 
difficulty  in  explaining  the  actions  of,  and  assigning  a  cause 
or  causes  for,  these  activities,  than  he  finds  in  the  explana- 
tion of  various  other  natural  phenomena.  The  methods, 
works,  and  results  of  priestly  labors  are  seen  to  be  as  clearly 


A  Philosophical  Jnquiri/  into  the  Priuiiides  of  lielifjioa.  271 

natural  as  those  of  a  Turner,  a  Davy,  a  Farady,  a  Galileo,  a 
Newton,  a  Sbakespere,  a  Stevenson,  a  Cooke,  or  a  Ilerschel. 
Whatever  has  been,  or  is,  accomplishetl  among  men,  the  crit- 
ical inquirer  knows  is  the  natural  result  of  human  endeavor ; 
and  endeavor  is  but  the  outward  manifestation  of  inward  mo- 
tives which  move  the  subject  to  act  either  for  self  or  another. 
A  motive  must,  therefore,  be  either  altruistic  or  egoistic. 
There  have  been,  and  are,  many  most  able  philosophers  who 
refer  all  human  action  to  egoistic  motives ;  and  while  the 
writer  does  not  feel  able  with  those  ti^  wholl}'  deny  tlie  exist- 
ence of  altruistic  motives,  he  is  not  ignorant  of  the  fact  that 
the  part  they  accomplish  in  human  affairs  is  most  obscure, 
and  known,  upon  critical  exainiaation,  to  be  insignilicanlly 
little  ;  while  that  accomplished  under  egoistic  motives  is  most 
obvious,  and  known,  upon  critical  examination,  to  be  every- 
where existent  and  inconceivably  great. 

As  in  the  case  of  other  laborers,  so  in  the  case  of  priests, 
the  altruistic  endeavor,  as  far  as  it  denotes  purely  disinter- 
ested activity,  is  most  obscure  and  limited ;  while  the  egoistic 
is  most  obvious  and  far-reaching.  Moreover,  no  endeavor, 
whether  that  of  the  general  on  the  field  of  battle,  or  that  of  the 
missionary  in  the  jungles  of  Africa,  is  impossible  with  labor  ; 
and  of  all  endeavor  onl}''  an  inlinitesimal  part  is  not  put 
forth  for  the  sake  of  money  or  money's  worth.  Thus, 
while  labor  is  master  of  all  possibilities,  it  remains  in  gen- 
eral the  slave  of  money  or  money's  worth.  The  latter  may 
be  social  position,  prestige,  fame,  historic  mention,  a  gen- 
teel life,  or  even  the  hope  of  future  reward.  Thus  tlu 
philosopher,  finding  in  nature  a  full  and  sufficient  explana- 
tion of  every  religious  activity  and  phenomena,  neither  in- 


272  Essays  on  God  and  Man. 

fers,  nor  postulates,  nor  admits  supernatural  interferences ; 
nor  believes  in  the  miracles  of  deluded  persons,  conjurers, 
or  deinonsc  But  from  the  fact  that  religion  and  its  workings 
are  seen  to  him  to  be  true  to,  and  consonant  with,  nature,  he 
infers  that  it  must  have  its  origin  and  end  in  Nature's  Es- 
sence, or  Nature's  Life ;  and  believes  that  it  is  the  link  that 
binds  the  human  soul  to  its  God,  that  of  God  and  man  it 
may  make  one. 

Thus  we  find  ourselves  at  last  upon  a  rock :  for  while  the 
conflicting  dogmas  of  religion  are  based  upon  imaginary 
quantities,  ghosts,  hobgoblins,  the  products  of  priests  and 
medicine-men ;  the  fundamentals  of  all  religions  are  the 
highest  products  of  the  human  mind  under  the  fostering 
care  of  God. 

While  I  bid  to  the  former  adieu,  and  advise  others  to  hurl 
them  back  on  the  dark-minded  fanatics  who  gave  them  birth ; 
I  would,  on  the  other  hand,  apply  to  the  essentials  and  fun- 
damentals of  all  religions,  the  beautiful  words  of  the  gifted 
Pope : 

"All  are  but  parts  of  one  stupendous  whole, 

"Whose  body  nature  is,  and  God  the  soul ; 

That,  changed  tlirough  all,  and  yet  in  all  the  same ; 

Great  in  the  earth  as  in  the  ethereal  frame ; 

"Warms  in  the  sun,  refreshes  in  the  breeze, 

Glows  in  the  stars,  and  blossoms  in  the  trees ; 

Lives  through  all  life,  extends  through  all  extent, 

Spreads  undivided,  operates  unspent." 


IXDEX. 


Acts  of  the  Apostles: 
author   of,   67;   character   of,   (J8; 
preparation  of,  68. 
Adam  : 
fall    of ,  iaS-SSo ;  the  federal  head, 
231 ;  inherited  guilt  of,  205. 
Adam.'<,  I'ljoF.,: 

ou  the  moon's  acceleration,  100. 
Abeknethy: 

on  tlio  sulferings  of  hell,  257. 
Alex.vxdhiaxs,  the,: 

on  immortality,  lUl. 
Aeschylus: 

on  inimortalitj-,  190. 
Annihilation: 

impossible,  8;  unlhinkabU',  177. 
Antiquity: 
Confucius  on,   132;  and  tradition, 
56. 
Achilles: 

wliy  he  was  praised,  72. 
Aristotle: 
his  advice  on  tlie  use  of  doubt, 
2;  oncau.-^e  and  effect,  7;  ou  be- 
ing and  force,  8;  on  intelligence^ 
9;  a  great  liglit  in  all  ages,  10;  on 
the  rule  of  judgment,  54  ;  on  God, 
8,  9,  87,  111,  124;  on  the  conser- 
vation of  energy,  9.»;  on  annihi- 
lation, 99;  on  creation,  99;  on 
immortality,  104, 179;  on  rewards, 
and  i)unishnient3, 113;  on  relig- 
ious gatherings,  115;  on  liber- 
ality, 116,  US;  on  purity  of  life, 
119;  on  God's  immutability,  124; 
on  tlie  soliisli  man,  117;  on 
pliilantliropliy,  117;  on  forgive- 
ness, 118;  doubts  immortality, 
179;  Uarwinon,  179;  on  tlie  origin 
of  tilings,  203;  on  monism,  209; 
on  religion,   214. 


AUISTOPIIANTIS: 

on  forming  alliances,  4. 
ATOMS: 
no  knowledge  of,  205;  Huxley  on, 
20.5;    .Spencer  on,  205;    probably 
have  one  and  the  same  essence, 
206. 
AUNOBius: 

on  the  uuknowability  of  God,  16. 
ArosTLES,  the,: 
could  they  writje,  54. 

AGNOSTICISM: 

and  fanaticism,  18;    does  not  de- 
stroy   the     religious    conscious- 
ness, 27;   and   science,  98;   and 
Darwin,  200. 
Apocuyi'iia,  the,: 

the  Koman  church  and  the,  84. 
AOKELiLS,  Marcus,: 
on  the  rule  of  life, 28:  on  Nature,  29. 

AUTOLYCHUS: 

on  Honesty  and  Trust,  236. 

ANTAGONISM: 
Grove,  .Sir  William  R.,  on,  264. 

ASOORS: 
how  they  became   desperate,  226; 
they  attack  heaven,   226;    vomit 
blood,  227;  light  with  the  Soors, 
228. 

Atonement,  blood,: 
Noah  makes  a  blood-offering,  238; 
God's  alleged  commands  con- 
cerning, 2,58;  a  perpetual  institu- 
tion, 239;  Jephthah's  offering, 
239;  Jehovah's  alleged  offering, 
241 ;  Elijah's  sacrilice,  239;  a  doc- 
trine common  to  all  barbarous 
people,  239-240;  rational  explan- 
ation, of,  240,  246;  a  repul-^ive, 
disgusting,  and  blasphemous 
doctrine,     241-246;     a      man-of- 

(27:5) 


274 


Index. 


Atonement,  Blood,:  — Contiuaed. 
straw,  24-2;  avail&  uothing  245- 
246;  the  doctriue  of,  imuioral,  246; 
adieu  bidden  to  it,  246  ;  the  sacri- 
fice of  Jeoud,  ttie  ouly  begotten 
son,  247;  doctrine  of,  rejected, 
266;  the  true  atonement,  266,  267. 
Augustine: 

on  damnation  of  children,  258. 
Braun  : 

on  evolution,  13. 
Bathybius: 

as  a  form  of  elemental  life,  33. 
Bacon: 

on  knowledge,  83. 
Brahma: 
orders  Seev  to  swallow    the  fatal 
drug,  226. 
Belief: 

the  common,  139. 
Benevolence: 
the  richest  fruit    of,    127;    man's 
habitation,  130;  and  riches,  131 ; 
man's    cliaracteristic,    131;    and 
righteousness,  131. 
Bible,  the,: 
criticised  more  and  more,  3 ;  not  a 
little     in    it     unacceptable,     40; 
Tyndall  on,  50;  Mueller  on,  173; 
not  literally  inspired,  95;  science 
emancipated  from,  173. 
Books; 

less  effective  than  the  voice,  55. 
Blood: 
all  things  purged  by,  239;  atone- 
ment, disgusting    character    of, 
241. 
Boasting: 

Confucius  on,  129. 
Boston: 

on  the  sufferings  of  hell,  257. 
Buddhism. 

Its  rise  and  prevalence,  40. 
BuRROw.'i,  John,: 

on  miracles,  etc.,  91. 
Canon : 
the  earliest,  75;  the  Muratonian, 
78;  gradually  fixed,  79;  virtually 
settled.  81,  82,  83  ;  not  determined 
by  a  general  council,  83,84;  the 
various  canons,  83,  84. 


Caklyle: 

on  man,  216. 
Carter; 

on  Moses,  265. 
Calvin,  John,: 
on  reprobation,  258;  on  damnation, 
259. 
Chakka: 

used  to  decapitate  Raboo,  226. 
Cause: 
every,  has  its  effect,  242  ;  exempli 
fled  by  the  laws  of  heredity,  242, 
243. 
Creed: 
does  not  save,  2S,  71 ;  Laing  on,  98 , 
the  common,  137. 
Clergy: 
the   Scotch,  in   the  17th.  cent.,  257; 
how  they  have  deceived,  2,  268. 
Clement: 

superstition  of,  56  ;  on  hell,  253. 
Creation,  Special,: 
no  reason  for  belief  in,  138;  Spen- 
cer   on,    1:59;    at   variance  with 
known  facts,  139;  bishop  of  Car- 
lyle  on,  140, 
Ciceuo: 

on  life,  191;  on  immortality,  199. 
Civilization; 

severe  in  its  tests,  1. 
CuiiisT,  Jesus,: 
Belief  in  his  divinity  not  accepted 
by  scientists  in  general,  2,236; 
belief  in  his  divinity  not  neces- 
sary to  virtue,  29 ;  what  he  came 
for,  30,  95;  his  birth  and  early 
life,  44,  47;  his  works,  44;  his 
teachings  true,  89,  146;  divinity 
of,  unproved,  89,  91,  93,  94  ;  Fre- 
niaulle  on,  95;  belief  in  divinity 
of,  not  necessary  to  salvation,  95, 
236,  237;  his  summary  of  man's 
duty,  125. 
Christ; 
the  resurrection  of,  154-160;  Seidel, 
Prof.,  on,  158;  a  living  soul  in  a 
dead  world,  159;  belief  in  his 
resurrection  and  discipleship, 
159,160;  his  divinity,  236;  exem- 
plifies the  will  of  God,  236;  our 
example,  236;  on  damnation,  247; 


Index. 


27b 


Cm!l8T :  —  f'ontimieil. 
in  what  way  our  atonement,  SiJti; 
a  teacher  scut  from  God,  206. 

CmtlSTIANITY: 

its  rise  and  prevalence,  41;  exclu- 
sive claims  of,  not  ail.,  .OO,  !t7,  271- 
272;  origin  of,  similar  to  that  of 
other  religions,  .11;  compared 
with  other  religions,  90,  137; 
Strauss,  Schopenhauer,  and 
Spencer  on  97;  its  superiority. 
In  what  It  consists,  103;  its  one- 
ness with  other  religions,  104, 137 ; 
action  and  spread  of,  natural, 
271-272;  and  persecution,  245. 
Children: 

Plato    on    their     education,     12.5; 
should    obey  their  parents,   127. 

CONSCIOUSNES.S: 

hidden  to  all  but  the  possessor  of 

it,  11;  the  basis  of  thought,  11; 

bespeaks    God's    existence,    14; 

Huxley  on,  175;  the  Infinite,  181. 

Crookes,  Pkof.,: 

on  evolution,  13,  36. 
COMKTS  : 

former  dread  of,  passed  away,  34. 
Church: 
as  a  teacher,  51 ;  and  free  thought, 

75;    Laing  on    the  creed  of,  9S; 

what  she  must  do,  99. 

C0L0.SSIANS,KPISTLE  TO  THE,: 

regarded  by  many  as  spurious,  6S. 
Confucius: 
on  worship,  125;  on  prayer,  125;  on 
trn.'.t  in  God,  120;  on  obedience  to 
parents,  lJO-127;   on   the  golden 
rule,  127;  on  diligence,  134;  as  a 
man,  135. 
CONVEU.SIOS: 

of  the  heathens,  270. 
Conservation  of  Energy: 

universally    accepted,    99;     Aris- 
totle on,  99;    Maxwell   on,    204; 
Huxley  on,  205;  Spencer  on,  205. 
Contentment: 

Confucius  on,  128;  Aurelius  on,  29; 
Darwin: 

on  r..velation,32,  97. 
Dana  : 

on  force,  217. 


Damnation: 
doctrine  of,  247-267;  Christ  on,  247; 
Plato  on,  248;  Vedas  on,  24S;  Mr 
gil  on,  249;  Tertulllan  on,  250; 
Whiston  on,  250;  Swiuden  on,25:j; 
St.  John  on,  251,  252;  Parsons  on, 
252,  256;  .Junies  on,  252,  253;  Clem- 
ent on,  253;  St.  Thomas  on,  254; 
Esdras  on,  254,  255;  Furniss  on, 
255,256;  Wodrowon,256;  Ituther- 
ford,  256,  257;  Boston  on,  257; 
Abernethy  on,  2.57;  Halyburton 
on,  257;  Augustine  on,  2.58;  Cal- 
vin on,  258,259;  Burgess  on,  260 1 
Westminster  Confession  on,  259, 
260;  Ilildersham  on,  260; 
Francke's  Librl  Symbol,  on, 
260,  261;  true  doctrine  of,  262, 
268. 

De  Stael,  Madame,: 
on  how  to  live,  24;  on  SchcUing's 
school,  214. 

Design: 
In  nature,  37. 

Death: 
must  be  preferred  to  base  life,  121, 
135;  a  fact  not  to  be  disputed, 
151;  Job  on,  151;  Isaiah  on,  151; 
the  Psalmist  on,  151 ;  Ecclesiastes 
on,  151;  Christ  on,  151;  loss  of 
individuality  in,  183;  gates  of, 
never  opened,  1S4 ;  Aristotle  on, 
219;  Plato  on,  200. 

Devil: 
the  father  of  lies,  225;  cast  into 
hell,  225,  229;  story  of  his  fail, 
229;  making  sacrifices  to,  2.>5;  ex- 
istence of,  reasonably  denied, 
264. 

Demogeot: 
on  t'alvlu,  258,  259. 

Diderot: 
on  the  Gospels,  59. 

Diligence: 
Confucius  on,  134. 

Doubt: 
a  great  aid  In  investigations,  2 ;  the 
mother  of    invention,  2;  In  the 
best  and  greatest,  18, 19. 

Dogmas: 
save  no  one,  71. 


276 


Index. 


Doty  : 

must  be  done,  121,  135,  219;  sum- 
marized, 125,  135. 
Druids: 
believed  in  immortality,  197;  pur- 
ity of    their  tenets,  197. 
Dualism  and  :Monism,  201. 
Earth: 

history  of,  33. 
Ephesians,  Epistle  to,: 
generally    regarded    as    spurious, 
68. 
Eve: 
eats  the  forbidden    fruit,  231;   al- 
leged curse  of,  231. 

ESDRAS: 
on    the    punishment    of    hell,  254, 
255. 
Eneugy: 

conservation  of,  33,  99. 
Edelmanx  : 

on  the  Gospels,  59. 
Eendua: 
gives  the  water  of  life  to  Xarayan, 
229. 
Exasifle  : 

power  of,  134. 
Elements  : 

evolution  of,  205. 
Elijah: 

sacrifices  the  prophets,  239. 
Experience  : 

the  basis  of  science,  4. 
Epistles: 
considered   as    a    whole,  67;    the 
Pauline,  69. 
Evil: 
Plato  on,  121 ;  accepted  origin  of, 
225;  accepted  origin  of,  a  mon- 
strous superstition,  230;  no  one 
wishes  it  for  himself,  263;  true 
origin  of,  262,  265. 
Evolution: 
not  atheism,  12, 13;  God  the  worker 
in,  12, 145;  firmly  established,  33, 
100,140,189,  its  nature,  100;  and 
religion,  1:J8,  146;  why  some  re- 
ject, 140;  and   American    biolo- 
gists, 189. 
Exaggeration: 
the  most  destructive  vice.  51. 


Faith: 
various  forms  of,  40 ;  saves  no  one, 
71 ;  all  essentially  the  same,  102. 
Fathers: 
Wescott  on  the,  56;  and  tradition, 
56;  believed  every  absurdity,  56. 
Fall  of  Man  : 
contradictions  concerning,  232;    a 
horrid  doctrine,  233;  au  imagin- 
ary quantity,  234. 
Family  : 

the  basis  of  national  welfare,  128. 
Freedom: 
difficult  to  prove  human,  11;  man- 
kind in  general  believe  in,  11. 
Freemantle  : 
on     inspiration,    65;     on    Christ's 
divinity,  95. 
Freethought: 

the  church  and,  75. 
Frederick  of  Prussia: 
how  he  obtained    his    grenadiers, 
243. 

FiCHTE  : 

on  knowledge,  217. 
Friendship: 

the  good  and  the  evil,  134. 
Force : 
persistence  of,  necessary,  6;  crea- 
tion and  destruction  of,  6,  8, 177; 
God  the  source  of  all,  8,262;  all 
may  be  will  force,    13,    217;  all 
forces  reducible  to  one,  34, 101, 
217 ;  Schopenhauer  on,  175. 
Force: 
Spencer  on,  174  ;Kant  on,  176;  Dana 
on,  217. 
FuRNiss,  Rev.  J.,: 

on  the  sufferings  of  hell,  255. 
Genesis: 

Aristotle,  on,  203. 
God: 
man  seeks  alter,  3, 15;  mankind  in 
general  believe  in,  5,  14 ;  ( he  idea 
of,  not  innate,  5;  knowledge  of, 
a  consequent  of  reasoning,  5,  14; 
some  do  not  believe  in,  5;  cannot 
be  comprehended,  7, 12, 14, 15, 16 ; 
eternal  and  best,  8,88;  is  intelli- 
gent, 9,  13,  108;  guides  and  rules 
creation,  9,    102,  103,    110;    most 


Index, 


'111 


GOD:— Contimu'il. 

rcasruiiible  to  lielieve  in,  12, 18, 37 ; 
the  ori{,'iu  ami  end  of  all  tliinjjs, 
17,25,108;  man  firmly  bound  lo,  19; 
no  respecter  oi'  persons,  22.  137  ;  in 
wliom  he  delights,  24,  237,  2;}8; 
wlio  is  dear  to,  24,  28,  30,  95;  all 
Ills  cliildren,  :55 ;  is  free, 37 ;  where 
lie  dwells,  71, 88 ;  dellnilion  of,  87 ; 
the  substance  and  fulness  of  crea- 
tion, 87,  88,  101 ;  tlie  vital  force 
of  the  universe,  102;  tlie  crea- 
tor, 109;  witliout  beginning?,  109; 
the  father  of  all,  110,  111;  judgeth 
righteously,  114;  looks  to  the 
heart,  115;  can  do  no  evil,  121; 
is  good,  121 ;  is  love,  122  ;  is  im- 
mutable, 124,  2(i7;  the  worship  of' 
necessary  to  purity,  125,  133; 
upholds  the  truth,  120;  his  provi- 
dence, 12G;  should  seek  his  ap- 
proval, 120;  reveals  himself  to 
all,  127,  218;  the  true  word  of, 
143;  works  in  evolution,  145;  and 
the  laws  of  nature,  14C;  im- 
manent in  nature,  182;  upholds 
creation,  182;  Leibnitz  on,  182; 
Kant  on,  182;  Spinoza  on,  182; 
Mayer  on,  182;  and  so-called 
revelation,  218;  Adam  and  Eve 
cursed  by,  231 ;  made  the  author 
of  crime,  2:;3,  235;  how  libeled, 
237,.  241 ;  propitiation  of,  with 
blood, 239, 240;  how' the  barbarous 
reason  about  him,  240,  241; 
Plato's  name  for,  241 ;  there  is  but 
one,  207;  the  eternal  .Savior,  267 

GosrKL: 

the  everlasting,  30. 

GOSl'KLS: 

their  authors  uncertain,  ,")4,  58;  the 
apocryphal,  57;  origin  of,  uncer- 
tiiin,  .J8,  tU  ;  Diderot  on,  59;  Edel- 
mann  on,  59;  origin  of,  60-04;  in- 
spired cliaracter  of,  not  at  lirst  ac- 
cepted, 77;  tlic  synoptic, 02  ;  Ueuss 
on,  55,  58,  01,  02;  variations  of,  74; 
our  present,  not  original,  64,  15-5. 
Gho.sts: 

prevalent  belief  in,   ]t!l  ;  not  uni- 
versally   liclieved  in,   101;  if  ap 


GHOST.S :  —  Continued. 

pearances  of,  could  be  substan- 
tiated, would  conclusively  prove 
tlie  immortality  of  the  soul,  101 ; 
belief  in,  decreases  as  education 
increases,  101;  sclentilic  men  dis- 
believe In,  161. 

Gold: 
Xavarette  on  tlie  power  of,  208. 

Grove: 

on  antagonism,  204. 

JlAPPINKS.S: 

condition  of,  30;  source  of,  208. 

IlADK.S: 

atonement    made    there,  248,   245, 
260 ;  situation  of,  249,  250 ;  Tertul- 
lian  on,  250. 
Halykckton: 
on  the  sufferings  of  hell,  257. 

IlKILPUIN: 

on  evolution,  33. 
Hell: 
who    shall    Intiabit,    114,   21-^;    thi 
Vedas  on,  2is;  situation  of,  230, 
251;  who  lodge  there,  249;  terri- 
ble forms  found  there,  249, -j.jj; 
Virgil  on,   249;  alleged  punish- 
ment of ,  251-257 ;  atonement  made 
there,  248. 
Hebrews : 
Gosjiel  of  the,  63;  Epistle   to  the, 
69;  their  ideas  of  God,  139. 
Hermes  TitisMECisTOs: 

on  the  Creator,  83. 
Heredity': 

examples  of,  243. 
Heaven: 
the  nobility  of,    133;  the  war   in 
225-229;    government    of,    242;  a 
place  of  rewards,  177,  194, 199. 
Heathens: 

the  conversion  of,  270. 
Hooker: 
on  man's  soul,  6;  on  the  unknow- 
ability  of  God,  16. 
Homer: 

on(;od,20;  on  immortality,  195. 
Holland,  .^ir  Henry,: 

on  heredity,  243. 
IlrxLEV: 
on  the  love    of   truth,  5;  on   the 


278 


Index. 


Huxley  •  -Continued. 

reign  of  science,  35;  on    iinmor- 
talitj.OS;  on  evolution,  100. 

HcMiLii  v: 
(.'onfucius  on,  1,13. 

IlL'MHOLKT: 

on  tiie  Old  Testament,  173. 
HuSBANi>: 

wife  niu.st  obey,  131. 
Hypocrjsy: 

Coufuc;us,  129. 
Individuality: 

loss  of,  in  death,  183. 

IDE.4.S: 

the  do 5tiinG  of  innate,  false,  5,  6. 
iRiiX.Et  s : 
on  ori  jfinal  Gospels,  63. 

INJURY' :    ' 

hoNV  recompensed,  1-27. 

INSPIRVTION: 

tht  ^alse  method  in  jiroof  of,  7(  ; 
of  the  New  Testament,  77. 

IRAVAT : 

the  mighty  elephant,  225. 
Jehovah: 
revolting  characteristics  attribut 
to,  241. 
Intelligence: 

derivation  of,  140. 
Infants: 
Augustine     on    their    damnNdon, 
258;  Calvin  on  their  damnation, 
25'J;  Hildersham  on  their  dam- 
nation,  2(50;    Westminster   Con- 
fession on,  200. 
Immaculate  Conception: 

as  to  belief  in,  89,90. 
Irving: 

on  the  British  nobility,  244. 
Immortality  of  the  soul: 
Huxley  on,  98;  a  tenet  of  all  re- 
ligions, 104,  214;  Aristotle  on* 
104,  178;  Zoroaster  on,  107;  who 
shall  have  immortality,  136; 
highest  proof  of,  143;  the  ques- 
tion of  the  age,  149;  Mill  on,  162; 
language  no  proof  of,  173,  177; 
possession  of  reason  no  proof  of, 
168.  200;  presumptions  in  dis- 
proof of,  174-181 ;  no  certainty 
of,  177,  221;  Aristotle's  doubt  on. 


Immortality  of  the  soul:— Con- 
tinued. 
178 ;  science  on,  179, 180. 181 ;  Muel 
ler  on,  180;  Job  on,  180;  disbelief 
in,  and  atheism,  184;  athei>m 
does  not  necessarily  follow  dis- 
belief in,  1S4;  humanity  as  a 
whoie  believes  in,  187, 190;  belief 
in,  consonant  with  philosophy. 
190-203,213;  nyt  a  belief  of  man 
in  the  lower  stages,  187;  belief 
in,  a  result  of  thought,  188;  a 
normal  belief,  191 ;  and  the 
ancients,  192;  Zoroaster  on,  192; 
Piierecydes  on,  192;  Pythagoras 
on,  193;  Socrates  on,  19:3-194,  200; 
Plato  on,  194;  the  Alexandrians 
on,  194;  Homer  on,  144;  Sopho- 
cles on,  196;  Druids  and  the,  197; 
the  eastern  nations  and  the,  19S; 
Mohammedanism  and  the.  198; 
Cicero  on,  199;  Cyrus  on,  20C,. 
Scipio,  Darwin,  et  ceterl  on,  200 
Immutable: 
God  is,  124. 
Judgment: 

general  and  individual,  23. 
Justin: 
on  Sunday  gatherings,  77;  on  '^he 
Old  Testament,  77. 
James,  Saint,:  , 

the  epistle  of,  69. 
James: 

on  the  punishments  of  hell,  253. 
Jacobi: 

on  man,  217. 
Jesus: 
stories  from   the  apocryphal  gos- 
pels about,  44-47;  did  not  speak 
from  MSS.,  55;  Vld.  "  Christ." 
John,  Saint,: 
gospel  of,  03;  epistles  of,  69;  Reve- 
lation of,  70. 
JUDE,  Saint,: 
epistle  of,  7\\ 

IlNOV.-LEDGE: 

how  to  obtain,  83 ;  Flchte  on,  217. 
Language : 

origin  of,  140,  170;  not  an  exclusive 
possession  of  -nan,  169;  tlie  cut- 
come  of  reason,  1C9;  what,  169; 


Index. 


■2ld 


LAXfiUAfiE:-  Contimu'd. 

GeijCer  on,  170;  Mmller  on,  170, 
180;  Xolruoii,  171  ;  ii  work  of  time, 
171, 17.!,  ISO;  had  a  natiirul  orlj;ln> 
171;  pliy.s'u)lo{ry  on,  172;  Sponcer 
on,  172;  ])osses.siou  of,  no  proof 
of  Immorality,  173;  roots  of,  l!i!). 

Lambeut: 
transmits  his  peculiarities,  il:!. 

Laixg: 
on  IJible  traditions,  ^OS. 

LecivV: 
on  miracles,   i)-2;    on   transuljstan- 
tiaiion,   258;    on  infant    damna- 
tion, iaS. 

Life: 
simplest  form  of,  33;  purity  rather 
thaa  length  of,  desire<l,  121 ;  not 
as    desirable    as    rigliteousness, 
130;  Cicero  on,  131. 

LiBERALITV: 

Aristotle  on,  IIG;  ruie  of,  IIS. 
Like: 

lilie  besets  like,  203. 
Locke: 

on  perception,  G. 
LovE: 

should  love  all,  127,  128;  i;od  i.--,122. 
Luke,  Saint,: 
l)roductions  of,  07:  gospel  of  02,  04, 
7.). 
Lumbar  Cuuve: 
in  m:iu,  104;  a  result  of  ad;intation» 
104. 
Man: 
troubled  witli  many  questions,!; 
deceived  on  all  .sides,  2  ;  religious 
nature  of,   most   imposed  upon, 
3,  21.');  seeks  after  God,  3,  19, 143, 
144,  146,  21.-),  217;  the  nu-asure  of 
all,  IC;  bound  to  God,  19;  condi- 
tions of  welfare  of,  24;  naturally 
religious,  3.5,  l:;fi,  214  ;  made  great 
by  reason  only,  72;  God  dwells 
In,  71.  88,  217;  the  super.-^titious, 
103;    riato  ou  divine  nature  of, 
105,  216;  dear   to  man,  117;   the 
noble,  117;  should  love  all,  12"; 
the  superior,  12S,  131,132,  133,  144; 
the  real,  130;  the  great,  remains 
a  child,  132;  the   irreligious,   137; 


Max:  —Continued. 

early,  had  no  religion,  143;  why 
religious,  143;  seeks  immortality, 
143,  140;  the  two  halves  of,  144; 
has  uuion  with  God,  144;  con- 
stantly changing,  144;  the  free 
and  tlie  slave,  14:^;  subject  to  mis- 
takes, 149;  nature  of,  essentially 
the  same  as  that  of  other  anl- 
m.als,  103;  position  of,  in  the 
animal  world,  103;  lumbar  curve 
of,  104;  Mueller  on,  lO'j;  immor- 
tality of,  may  be  believed,  but 
cannot  be  proved,  ICo;  Kant 
on,  189;  Immortality  of,  213; 
Carlyle  on,  216;  the  power  that 
moves  him,  216;  JacobI  on,  217' 
alleged  fall  of,  230;  ai.eged  curse 
of,  231;  could  he  set  at  naught 
God's  providence,  233;  makes 
his  own  god,  245. 
Man.SKL: 
on  theism,  27 ; 
ou  belief  in  God,  38. 
Maxwell: 

on  tlie  conservation  of  energy,  99. 
Mahomet: 
his  birth,  41;  his  religion,  41;  his 
divine  call,  41. 
Makk,  Saint,: 

gospel  of,  62,  64. 
Maucion: 
canon  of,  7.i:  excommunicated,  75, 
held  the  .'Scriptures  imi)erfect,76. 
Mat  HEW,  Saint,: 
gospt'l  of,  02,  04. 
Matter: 
apart  from    mind,    unknown,  174, 
176,  209,  211 ;  real  nature  of,  un- 
known, K.");  Mueller  on,  176;  Car- 
lyle on,  207,  208;  Goethe  on,  203; 
matter  and  si)irit,  210;    essence 
common  to  matter  and  mind,  211. 
Mater'alism: 

compared  with  spiritualism,  175. 
Mencius: 

on  obedience  to  parents,  127. 
MlRACLKS: 
belief  in,  generally  refused,  32,49, 
140,  141,  157,  I.V.);    no  proof  of  a 
faith,  40,   141;  and    the    Catholic 


280 


Index. 


MiBACLES :  —  Continued. 

Church,  50;  Mill  on,  50,92,  Bur- 
rows on,  91;  Lecky  on,  92;  with 
more  reason  rejected  than  ac- 
cepted, \aS,  159;  Hume  and  Dar- 
win on,  157;  there  are  no,  159,  214. 
Mistrust: 

necessary  to  safety,  2. 
Mind: 
the  two  kinds,  3;  not  infallible,  3; 
priority  of,  108,  10'.);  coextensive 
with  animal  life,  138;  as  a  mode 
or  result  of  material  action,  174- 
ISl;  every  energy    of,  preceded 
by       molecular     activity,     174; 
Spencer    on,    174;    apart    from 
matter  unknown,    174,   209,   211 ; 
Aristotle  on,  180;  as  a  mode  or 
manifestation    of    the     Infinite 
Mind,    181-184;   and  matter,  dif- 
ferent sides  of  the  same    thing 
204,   207;    is   its   essence  that  of 
matter,   200;  Stokes  on,    206;  an 
influx  from  the  Deity,  206;  Car- 
lyle   on,   207;    and  matter,   twin 
sisters,  20^;  and  matter,  common 
essence  of,  210,  211;  not  a  pro- 
ducer of   matter   so-called,  210; 
translation    of,  into   spirit,    210; 
immanent    in    nature,    143,   211; 
origin  of,  212;  original  cause  of, 
212. 
MILL: 
on  the  possibility  of  a  Revelation, 
38,  50;  on    miracles,  50,    90;    on 
Christ,  93. 
Minister: 
character   of  his  work,  51;  quali- 
fications  of,  51;  guilty  of    exag- 
geration, 54. 
Montaigne: 
on  doubt, 2. 
Money: 

the  power  of,  271. 
Monism  : 
reasonable,  204,  209;  Aristotle  on, 
209. 
MoNON : 

the  Universal,  212. 
MooN: 
acceleration  of,  190. 


Moke: 

on  Druidism,  197. 
Mohammedanism  : 

and    the    doctrine  of  immortality 
193. 
Muuatonian  Canon: 

its  value  overestimated,  78. 

MORDEU: 

Mencius  on,  131. 

MUUDEKEK: 

potentiiUy  born,  243. 
Natural  Religion: 
admits  no  miracles,  22;    broadest 
of  all  religions,  19. 
Xavarette : 

on  the  power  of  gold,  25S. 
Nature: 
design  in,  37;  laws    of,  ani    God, 
146;  text  of,  221. 
Narayan : 
decapitates  Raljoo,  226;  and    Nar, 
227;  hurls  his  ponderous  orb,  223. 
Nar: 
enters     the    field    with    Xarayan, 
227;  fills  up  the  path  to  heaven, 
238. 
New  Testament  : 
the  greatest  religious    work,    52; 
why  so  much    esteemed,    52-53; 
doctrine  of  inspiration  of,  a  grad- 
ual growtli,  77 ;  complete  writings 
of,  77 ;  on  a  level  with  the  Old,  78 ; 
earliest  collection  of  writings  of' 
78;  cause  of  collecting  writings 
of,  79;  corruption  of  writings  of, 
79;  what  served  as  rules  in  col- 
lecting, 81 ;  doubt  concerning  the 
books  of,  S3;  on  the  character  of, 
87. 
Xabu-kuditr-usur: 

inscrii)tibn  concerning,  90. 
Neel-Kant: 

Seev  called,  226. 
Nobility: 

Irving  on  the  British,  244. 
Old  Testament: 
Justin  regards  it  as  the  rule,  77; 
Mueller  on, 173;  Darwin  on,  173; 
Tyndall  on,,'0:  Humboldt  on,  173. 
Origin: 
on  the  unknowability  of  God,  16. 


Index. 


2«1 


Offspring : 

receive    the   moral   tendencies  of 
tln'ir  parents,  243. 

OKIMIEUS': 

on  (Joil,  SG. 
oinuoiMjxv: 

and  heterodoxy, '26S. 
OLTNEKAT,  Tin;,: 

Scliopcuhauer  on, 30. 

OUMUZn  ANI>  AUUIMAX: 

rival  gods,  23;). 

I'LATO: 

on  immortality,   105,  194;  on  God. 
17,  20,  2S,  12-2,  12.i,  12:» ;  ralla  God 
"father,"  112;  on  rewards   and 
punishments,  112;  on   God  as  a 
jiidsc,  114;  on  forgiveness  of  in- 
juries,  119;   on   virtue,   120;    on 
duty,  121;  on  the  education   of 
children,  125;   on  deatli,  200;  on 
man,  216;  on  damnation,  247;  on 
tlic  cause  of  sin,  2(;3. 
Prayer: 
natural  to  man,  25;  proper  In  man, 
125. 
Patias: 

on  tradition,  50,  73. 
Pakso-NS  : 

on  the  punishment  of  liell,  252,  2511 ; 
Paul,  .S  VINT,: 
as  an  author,  68 ;  alone  accepted  b\' 
Marcion,  76;  pastoral  epistles  of, 
76. 
Peter,  Saint,: 

gospel  of,  63;  epistles  of,  60,  70. 
Pkeachisg: 
bow  it  clianges,  27,   35;  extiava- 
gance  in,  103. 
Predestination  : 
Calvin   on,  258,  259;    AVestmlnster 
Confession  on,  260;  Chalmers  ou, 
261-262. 

PlIEUECVDES: 

on  immortality,  192. 

PUEVER: 

on  lioredity,  243. 
Priests: 

how  tlioy  have  deceived,  2,  26;  who 
should  be,  23;  Aristotle  on,  23; 
their  ollice,  2G;  liow  some  llljel 
God,  242;tlie   liorri<l   teai'liingof 


Priests:  — Continued. 

.some,  257,  2.5s ;  and  self  Interest, 
268;  tlie  dojjmas  tliey  jiroduce, 
269,270;  character  of  ttie  labor  of, 
271. 

Pmr.osopiiv: 
leads  to  God,  18,  19. 

PUILII'PIANS,  El'ISTI.E  TO  TIIK,: 

many  regard  it  as  spurious,  68 

PlIir.EMON,  El'ISTI-E  TO,: 

many  regard  it  as  si>urious,  68 
Philvxtiiroi'V: 

Aristotle  on,  178. 
Provekijs: 

delinition  of,  4. 
Protagoras: 

on  man,  16. 

PlKENIX: 

made  a  symbol  of  tlie  resurrection, 
57. 
Post: 

ou  politics  In  religion,  26. 

POI.YCARP: 

on  Marcion,  75. 
Popularity: 

Confucius  on,  128, 133. 
Propitiation: 
Origin  on,  240. 
Plutarch: 
on  war,  1. 
Pulpit: 
veiled  in  darkness  and  Insincerity, 
236. 
Puritanism: 

wliat  it  was,  26. 
Punishment: 
and  the  evil-doer,  112;  duration  of 
251. 
Uace: 
good  of  the,  more    to  be  desired 
than  that  of  the  individual,  23; 
soul  of,  23. 
RaU)o: 
assumes  the  form  of  a  .^oor,  226; 
i3  decapitated  l)y  Xarayan,  226; 
resolves  on  endless  hatred,  227. 
Reason: 
the  sole  judge  of  truth,  4,  84,it5; 
tlio  ground- worlc    of  theism,   6; 
rooted    in    God,  18:  man    excels 
in,  72,  166;  God  worlis  with,  85; 


2^2 


Index. 


Reason  :  —  Continue  J. 

not  an  exclusive  possession  of 
man,  IC.e,  1(58;  Vignoli  on,  IBCi; 
Spencer  on,  1G6;  Ballon  on, 
166;  Schopenhauer  on,  H;6;MiU 
on,  166;  Aristotle  on,  166;  the 
reasoning  cat,  167 ;  John  Mur- 
phy on,  168;  Carpenter  on, 
168;  in  different  animals,  168;  its 
possession  not  a  guarantee  of 
Im  iiortality,  168;  Cicero  on,  216; 
should  rule  the  life,  231. 

RELIGION: 

may  exist  in  the  sceptic,  18;  nat- 
ural, 19,  30;  definition  of,  20; 
common  principles  of,  22;  nec- 
essary to  man's  welfare,  23,  2o; 
the  true,  28;  revealed  in  the  mnn 
who  loves  humanity  most,  3'),  31 ; 
Darwin  on,  31;  the  many  forms 
of,  102  ;  rivalry  of  the  many  forms 
of,  102;  which  will  survive,  103; 
useful  to  all,  137;  a  work  of  evo- 
lution, 13S,  U2,  144, 145;  none  ex- 
clusively true,  141,  218;  is  natur- 
ally evolved,  142, 1-40,214;  God  the 
real  worker  in,  142;  what  is 
necessary  to  the  evolution  of, 
142;  the  highest  energy  of  man, 
144;  subject  to  constant  change, 
145,  146;  must  be  true,  146,  217; 
room  for  differences  of  opinion 
in,  14!);  definition  of,  185;  and 
belief  in  immortality,  186;  man 
has  faith  in,  2 13;  Aristotle  on> 
214;  will  never  die,  214;  his- 
tory of,  269;  in  unstable  equilib- 
rium, 268;  its  devotees,  268;  how 
to  arrive  at  the  true,  269;  the 
Christian,  26');  its  groundwork 
true,  269,  270;  conllicting  dog. 
mas  of,  269,  270;  all  parts  of  a 
groat  whole,  270. 

Resignation: 
heathen  and    Christian,  29;    Con 
facius  on,  126. 

Revelation: 

l3     it    possible,    36;    can     it   be 

proved,  38;  would  it  be  useless, 

38,  has  it   ever   been  made,  39. 

various  revelations   claimed:  39, 


Revelation  :  —  Continued. 

the  Christian,  its  exclusive 
claim  not  admitted,  39;  the 
Christian,  51;  Mill  on,  98;ali,  1., 
one  in  essentials,  136,  143,  219, 
tlio  common,  218;  all  panlytrue, 
all  partly  false,  218;  none  e.\- 
clusivcly  true,  219;  the  so-called 
only  revelation,  235;  substance 
of  all  so  called,  is  one,  235. 

Renovation. 
must  be  daily  sought,  130. 

Reuss: 
on  original  gospels,  55,58,  62,  on 
the  inspiration  of  the  gospels, 61 ; 
on  the  gospel  of  St.  John,  63 ;  on 
the  Acts,  68;  on  the  epistles  of 
St.  Peter,  69,70;  on  the  epistles 
of  St.  Jude,  70;  on  the  epistle  o: 
St.  James,  70;  on  the  epistle  c' 
the  Hebrews,  70;  on  the  New 
Testament  writings,  79. 

Reciprocity: 
tho  "one  word,"  128. 

Revelation: 
of  St.  John,  70. 

Rewards  and  Ponishments  : 
Aristotle  on,  113;  Plato  on,  112;  the 
Vedas  on,  113;  sure  results,  186 
197, -291;  not  postponed,  201;  the 
doctrine  of  postponement  of. 
immoral,  202. 

Resurrection; 
Plato  on,  152;  why  his  account  is 
not  believed,  153;  the,  of  Christ, 
153  ,  of  Christ  always  questioned; 
154;  rejected  by  multitudes  to- 
day, 154,  157,  160;  of  Christ,  is  it 
substantiated,  IH,  156,  158;  of 
Christ,  the  witnesses  of,  154, 160; 
St.  Paul  on,  157, 159 ;  belief  in,  not 
necessary  to  discipleship,  159, 160 ; 
open  to  grave  doubt,  158.  160, 

Righteousness: 
Confucius  on,  130;  the  state's 
prosperity,  130;  man's  path,  130; 
must  be  preferred  to  life,  130; 
and  the  superior  man,  132;  its 
reward,  186,  237,  238. 

RIVALRY : 

of  religions,  102;  of  nature,  264. 


Index. 


28.3 


Rock: 

upon  which  we  stand,  272. 
IIULE,  TiiK  Golden,: 
Confucius    on,     127,     128;    in    one 
word,  128. 
rtUTiiLKrouD: 

on  tlie  sufTeringt)  of  hell,  2-".t;,  2.)7. 
SaCiikd  IJ>()ivs: 

tln-ir  Insiiiratioa,  8S. 
Sacrifi^ks: 
what,  acceptable  to   God,  lU;  In 
olden  times,  1  lo  ;  vicarious,  tlieir 
revolting  character,  242;  and  sin^ 
242,  245. 
STRACSS: 

on  Christianity,  97. 
Salvation: 
who  shall  have,  137;  and  dogma.-', 
23(5;  on  what  it  does  depend,  2;g, 
237, 246. 
Savior: 
the  only,  235;  a  man-of-straw,  237; 
as  a  vicarious  sulferer,  242,  245; 
a  true  savior,  a  true  atonement. 
2u6. 

StIAKESPERE: 

on  deceit  and  pretence,  257. 

Sl'ENCER: 

on  innate  ideas  of  deity,  5 ;  on  con- 
eciousness,  11;  on  the  Absolute 
Force,  12,  38;  on  religions,  14,  i"7; 
on  mental  and  physical  phe- 
nomena, IS;  on  incarnations,  '.10, 
97;  on  special  creation,  139;  on 
Christianity,  97. 

SCHKLLING: 

Madame  DeStael  on,  214. 

SEI.FISHNES.S: 

Aristotle  on,  117. 
Seev: 
swallows  the   fatal   drug,  2»i);    U 
called  Neel-Kaut,  226. 
Stealing: 

Mencius  on,  13.!. 
Skupknt: 
and  Kve,  230;  alleged  subtlllty  of, 
230;  as  a  tempter,  234. 

Science. 
accepts  nothing  unproved, 1 ; loves 
truth,  5;  not  atheistic,  8,  12,  U; 
TK.,oa    the  worid,    35;  great  ad- 


Science:— Conilnucil. 

vance  of,  3.J;  and  revelation,  99; 
faith  of,  141. 
Swinuen: 

on  tlie  .situation  of  hell,  25iJ. 
Spinoza: 
on  existence  and  God,  25,  132,  183; 
on  body  and  soul,  176. 
Strive  : 
the  great  cause  of    development, 
1^9. 
SCRIPTURES: 
Inspiration  of,  21 ;    the    Christian, 
how  accepted,  21 ;  not  the  only 
revelation, 21,  l:56,235;of  the  New 
Testament,    52-71;     how     inter- 
preted   by  Romanists,    73;    how 
the     churches    determined,    82; 
literal  inspiration  of,  denied,  93. 
Sin: 

cause  of,  263-265;  origin  of,  205. 
Sincerity: 
Confuciu.s   on,   129;  the     way    of 
heaven,  129,  133. 
Spikit-Kevelatiuns: 
spiritualism  and  iinmortality,  162; 
in  the  light  of  science,  162. 
Spirit: 
Noire    on,  176;  Spinoza    on,  176; 
Goethe  on,  176;  Spencer  on,  IS. 
Scholar: 

loves  truth  rather  than  dogmas,  2. 
Socrates: 
on  virtue,  220;    on  death,  220;  on 
the  good  man,  220. 
Stokes: 

on  atheism,  5;  on  man's  origin,  10. 
SooRS: 

victorious,  229. 
Soodaus'n: 
flies   down  from  heaven,  223;  re 
tires  into  heaven,  229. 
Schopenhauer: 
on   the    Oupnekat,  39;  on  Chris- 
tianity, 97. 

SOPHICLES: 

on  immortality,  l'X>. 
Soul: 
Im.nortal  nature  of,  105,  106,   lOi  ; 
o:i  the  adoniniei.t  of,  120;  Us  ex- 
istence apart  from  body,  173,  134, 


28-i 


Index. 


Soul  :  —  Continued. 

211;  that  it  is  deathless,  reasona- 
ble, 213. 
Stobbs: 
on  politics  and  Christianity, 2t5. 

SUBSTAXCK: 

one  ultimate, 34;  the  universal,  212. 
Tu.vdition: 
in    ancient  times,  50,  72;  Catholic 
Church  and,  72;  and  Scripture, 
73. 
Tacitus: 

on  the  iudweUiug  of  God,  71. 
Tartarus  : 
Plato     on,    248;   Esdras    on,    254; 
Furnisson,  255. 
Testament,  the  Old,: 
Mueller  on,  173;  Darwin   on,  17:i; 
Tyndall  on,  59;  Humboldt  on,  173. 
Tertullian: 
on  the    unknowability  of  God,  16; 
on  the  situation  of  helJ,  250. 
Tempter: 

in  the  alleged  fall  of  man,  234. 
Tennyson  : 

quotations  from,  19,  90. 
Theism: 
simple,  the  broadest  form  of  the- 
istic  belief,  19. 
Theology: 

dogmatic,  passing  away,  27. 
Testament,  the  New,: 
origin  and  growth  of,  52;  wliy  so 
esteemed,  53;  contains  little  that 
is    peculiar,   54;   uncertainty  of 
much  in,  71. 
Thessalonians,      the       Second 
Epistle  to  the,: 
regarded  by  many  as  spurious,  68. 
Timothy: 
Kplstles  to,  regarded  as  spurious 
by  many,  OS. 
Titus: 
P^j)istle  to,  generally  regarded  as 
spurious,  68. 
Thomas,  Saint,: 

on  the  punishment  of  hell,  253,  254. 
Truth : 
the  truth  only  is  beautiful,  3;  love 
of,  necessary   to  scientiffc  pro- 
gress, 5;  alone  saves,  71;  ahvaye 


Truth  :  —  Continued. 

to  be    sought,  72,  15;i;  GuJ   pie- 
serves  the,  120 ;  must  be  practiced^ 
120;  and  the  superior  man,  132. 
Thucydides: 

quotation  from,  71. 
Tyndall: 

on  the  Old  Testament,  50. 
Uncertainty: 

constantly  attends  us,  223. 
Universe: 
the   body  of  God,  10;  depends  on 
God,  13 ;  directed  by  God,  9 ;  God's 
garment,   14;  God   immanent  in, 
18;  a  living  thing,  109;  Aurelius 
on,  29. 
Vedas: 
on  divine  knowledge,    13,  15,  108; 
a  prayer  from,  21 ;  on  who  is  dear 
to  God,  24;  on  immortality,  100, 
108,  198;  on  God,  111,  123;  on  re- 
wards and  punishments,  113;  on 
the  teachings  of,  21. 
Vicarious  Sacrifices: 
origin  of,  240;  revolting  character 
of,  242;  avail    nothing,  242,   245; 
adieu  to,  246. 
Vice: 
the  most  destructive,  51;  destroys 
the  soul,  220. 
Virgil: 
on  prayer,  20;  calls  God  "Father," 
111 ;  on  imraoilality,  195. 
Virtue : 
first  to  be  songht,  119,  120;  adorns 
tlie  soul,  127;  God  is  better  than, 
122;    every    good   thing    results 
from,  120;  what  constitutes  per- 
fect, 127;  brings  a  sure  reward, 
18G;  saves  the  soul,  220. 
AVallace: 

on  force  and  the  universe,  13. 
War: 
the    father    of    all    things,   1 ;    in 
heaven,  225;  motion  and  life  de- 
pend on,  264. 
Wesley: 

on  witchcraft,  58. 
Westcoit: 
on  the  early  fathers,  56;    on   the 
New  Testament  scriptures,  73, 


Judex. 


285 


WiusTON: 

on  the  situation  of  hell,  2j0. 
Wifk: 

on  obedience  of,  to  basband,  131. 
Will: 

as  the  substance  of  the  nniverse, 
13;    frei-dom    of,   never   estab- 
lished, ISo;  the  universnl,  212. 
WiTCiicuAKr: 

Jolin  Wesley  on,  53. 
Wouitow: 

on  the  sufferings  of  hell  256. 

WOMKN: 

wives  of  gods,  240;  b'uriuj;   chil- 
dren to  gulls,  90,  97,  ''40. 
WOKLU,  THE  SCIENXIT'   V,. 

faith  of,  141 


WOUD. 

wliat  one  word  may  do,  134. 
Wo  UK: 

necessarj  40  growth,  134. 
Worship: 

likens  tlie  worshipper  to  the  objec 
he  worships,  245. 
Xenophanics- 

on  God,  87. 
Zen'a: 

a  name  of  God,  88. 

ZOKOASTKU: 

Dn  God's  fatherhood,  107;  on  the 
lieavenly  nature  of  the  soul,  loT, 
on  the  perfection  of  Gu'l's  work, 
111 ;  on  immortality,  107  I'Ji. 


GOD   AND    MAN 

OPINIONS   OF   THE  PRESS. 


"The  author,  an  Episcopal  clergyman,  has  faith  in  the  reality  and  permanence  of 
religion,  whose  essence  has  been  overlaid  by  glosses  and  superstition.  Ily  lays  down 
as  embodying  tlie  faith  of  the  suientiflc  world  that '  there  i.s  an  infinite  iuteliigenco  wlioni 
we  call  God;  man  is  by  nature  a  religious  being;  every  religion  has  in  it  a  nucleus  of 
truth;  no  religion  is  exclusively  true,  or  founded  upon  n  exclusively  divine  revelation.' 
And  he  attempts  to  show  that  religion  is  useful  and  natural ;  that  its  essentials  are  one  ; 
that  God's  revelation  is  universal  and  continuous ;  that  God  has  been  no  more  mindful 
of  one  race  than  of  another,  and  is  immanent  in  the  universe,  especially  in  intelligences. 
lie  further  seeks  to  discriminate  between  what  is  divine  and  what  is  human  in  religion, 
and  to  sliow  that  man  may  reasonably  expect  a  future  life." — The  Popular  Science 
Monthly. 

"  Tills  work  is  written  by  an  Episcopal  clergyman  o'.  the  diocese  of  Missouri,  and 
deals  vtith  the  liearings  of  evolution  and  ot.'ier  scientific  theories  of  the  present  day  on 
the  acce;)ted  dogmas  of  religion.  The  author  is  clearly  imbued  with  both  the  religious 
and  scientific  spirit,  ami  is  thoroughly  in  earnest.  The  tone  of  the  work  is  excell  nt. 
The  style  also  is  simple  and  clear,  and  never  leaves  us  in  doubt  as  to  the  author's  mean- 
ing. Mr.  Bray's  religion  is  based  upon  scientific  doctrines  on  the  one  hand,  and,  on  the 
other,  upon  all  that  is  best  in  the  religious  teachings  of  the  whole  world.  He  holds 
strongly  to  the  evolution  philosophy,  though  believing  that  we  can  know  more  of  the 
divine  attributes  than  most  evolutionists  admit;  and  he  defines  God  as  '  universally 
extended  conscious  force.'  Christianity  is  regarded  as  the  best  of  all  religions,  and  as 
the  higlicst  outcome  of  human  nature.  Mr.  Bray's  book  will  well  repay  perusal." — 
Science,  Xew  York. 

"The  work  of  a  learned  man." — The  Atlantic  Monthly. 

"  It  is  a  most  remarkable  book.  It  is  a  revelation.  It  is  Robert  Elsmere  personified  ; 
only  we  have  in  your  book  the  full  and  comjdetc  reasons  why.  Its  perusal  stirs  within 
my  inner  being  a  sense  of  ajiprcciation,  and  that,  you  well  know,  means  a  good  deal- 
You  have  done  for  mankind  a  most  noble  work.  Happy  you  may  well  be  whatever  else 
may  betide  you  while  life  liere  shall  last." — Dr.  Stockwell,  author  of  Evolution  of 
Immortality. 

"  Xo  more  able  and  comprehensive  work  on  religious  questions,  has  appeared  in 
America." — Henry  M.  iniliams,  critic  on  the  St.  Louis  Repuhlic. 

"  The  work  will  be  rea  1  with  great  interest,  and  we  commend  it  to  our  readers  roost 
heartily." — Quarterly  Journal  of  Inebriety,  Ildrtford,  Conn. 

'■  He  dojs  not  hanrlle  the  subjjct  with  the  reserve  of  a  man  in  a  false  or  inconven- 
ient position,  but  with  the  combative  energy  of  one  whose  position  is  unquestionable 
and  whose  mission  is  •'.\<ia.T."—The  Netv  York  World. 

"  We  gladly  commend  the  work  to  those  who  are  deeply  thinking  of  the  future  of 
the  Christian  faith  and  its  relations  with  the  problem  of  tlie  unbelief  of  the  hour."- 
The  Boston  Globe. 

"  Every  page  of  the  book  shows  that  the  author  is  not  only  a  scholar  but  a  thinke\  ^ 
and  a  man  of  broad  spirit  ana  advanced  ideas.  The  liook  is  one  that  is  bound  to  attract 
attention  in  the  religious  world." — The  Cincinnati  Enquirer. 

"The  book  is  tliorough  and  painstaking.  It  is  wonderfully  erudite.  It  is  highly 
valuable  for  its  quotations  alone.  From  first  to  last  we  are  borne  forward  on  it  as  from 
theduep  sea  on  a  harbor-bound  tide.  Xo  one  can  read  it  and  not  be  helped  and 
strengthened."  —  The  New  Ideal,  Boston. 

"  Doctor  Bray  Is  an  evolutionist.  He  tests  everything  by  the  doctrines  of  evolution." 
—  The  Chicago  Tribune. 

"The  autlior  of  this  volume  is  a  tJiinker  and  a  scholar,  a  man  of  broad  views  and 
catholic  spirit.  His  acquaintance  witli  autliors  in  the  original  languages  and  with 
modern  thought,  is  manifest  in  every  chapter;  and  the  use  made  of  his  large  knowledge 


is  judicious  and  i-fToclive.  lie  believes  in  a  Divine  I'ower  iiniiian(-nl  in  llic  forces  of  tlie 
univers;-,  revealinjf  itself  in  tlie  evolution  of  world.'?,  in  the  life  and  iii;uil  of  man,  In  the 
literature  of  tlie  race.  Ills  work  Is  cominendaljie  for  Its  seliolarshii),  its  fairness,  and 
its  biild  and  vigorous  treatment  of  the  subject."— jTAc  lieligio- Philosophical  Journal, 
Chicago. 

"  It  i:j  written  in  a  scholarly  manner,  and  is  teeming  with  well  applied  quotations 
from  tlie  Sacred  Hooks  of  tlie  East,  the  ancient  Grecians,  the  early  fathers,  and  from  lii.- 
foremost  leaders  of  modern  thought  and  science.  The  lime  and  care  .spent  in  collecting 
these  numerous  passages  must  have  bjen  enormous."— 77ie  Open  Court,  Chicago. 

"It  bears  the  marks  of  scholarly  reading  and  of  clear  and  careful  thinking.  A  book 
of  advanced  thought.  There  is  no  lack  of  reverence  in  the  book  and  there  is  intense 
earnestness.    It  will  arrest  the  attention  and  meet  the  wants  •£  many  inquiring  minds" 

—  Unity,  Chicago. 

'•  There  is  no  concealment  of  what  he  believes,  and  no  covering  up  of  his  disbeliefs. 
Dr.  liray  wriies  with  the  plainness  of  an  lioncst  man,  and  with  tlic  courtesy  of  a  gentle- 
man. It  is  alucid  statement,  an  able  work;  its  ability  is  manifest.  To  come  across  a 
book  like  this  is  a  hopeful  augury  for  the  future  of  the  Christian  churcli.  Its  plan  ami 
groundwork  is  so  broad  and  philosophical,  that  the  minds  wliicli  may  have  been  >liaken 
by  spirited  attacks  like  those  of  Ingersoll,  may  here  Hud  solid  rock  on  which  to  stand.'* 

—  The  St.  Louis  Republic. 

"The  research  displayed  in  the  work  justifies  the  author's  honorary  titles.  Ills 
work  will  commend  itsjlf."  —  The  St.  Louis  Spectator. 

"  A  Western  book  tliat  is  the  reverse  of  light  is  altracting  attention.  Henry  Truro 
Bray  in  hi.s  God  and  Man,  htis  given  tlie  world  a  scholarly  and  philosoi>liic  work  of  liigh 
quality  and  appealing  force.  The  book  is  the  product  of  a  scholar  with  a  masterful 
grasp  of  a  i-rofound  subject.  It  is  treated  with  consummate  skill,  and  handled  with 
liberal  reasoning."' —  Erening  Xews,  Neicark,  N.  J. 

"  It  is  not  often  that  so  rich  a  volume,  within  the  same  compass,  treats  of  the  upper- 
most and  undermost  subject  of  persistent  thought,  with  so  much  of  co:nfort  and  enter- 
tainment to  the  reader.  Tlie  writer's  independence  as  well  as  Ciitholicity  of  view  and 
feeling,  has  no  bounds.  And  witli  this  independence  Is  combined  much  of  humor  and 
sarca-m  over  the  vagaries  of  superstition.  A  specimen  of  naive  frankness  and  freedom 
of  style;  learning  and  research.  .  .  A  learned  view  of  religion."— T'/ie  Brooklyn 
Eagle,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

"  This  is  the  work  of  a  man  who  has  read  widely  and  thought  deeply  on  the  subject 
of  Chrisliauit}' and  its  relations  to  other  cognate  religions.  If  fairness  consists  In 
stating  the  arguments  for  both  sides.  Dr.  Bray  is  a  fair  writer.  lie  seems  to  be  fearless 
as  to  what  spectres  he  may  conjure  up.    The  book  teems  with  evidence  of  scholarsiiip." 

—  The  Standard,  Bridgeport,  Conn. 

"Ile'.e  arc  images  of  thorough  scholarsiiip.  It  is  the  result  of  careful  study, 
patience,  and  a  strong  desire  to  tell  the  truth  jilainly,  reverently,  and  courteously  as 
becomes  the  scholar  and  gentleman.  Christianity  ha-i  a  strong  friend  in  Dr.  Bray.  The 
student,  the  jireacUer,  tlie  people  who  want  to  learn  the  undisguised  truth,  will  And  ii 
richly  worth  the  wiiile  to  read  and  study  \\.."—Democral  Gazette,  Darenport,  la. 

"  Tills  is  a  brave  book  and  a  learned  one.  It  is  selilom  that  a  clergyman  is  so  clear 
and  caiKlid.  It  is  a  surprising  book.  Dr.  Bray  is  a  born  theologian,  but  he  is  also  a 
genllemanand  a  scholar. "-/'/•ee-  Thought,  San  Francisco,  Cat. 

"  It  is  thoughtful  and  valuable  and  may  be  read  proiitably  by  all  students  of  morals." 
— Albany  Keening  Journal,  Albany,  N.  Y. 

"  A  work  constructed  with  great  breadth  of  view.  Tlie  reverend  author  seeks  to 
gnide  the  doubters  wlio  are  drifting  away  from  the  old  beliefs,  and  in  doing  so  he  is 
free  to  admit  that  there  are  good  reasons  why  men  cannot  all  of  them  holdfast  to  the 
beliefs  of  their  fathers.  T.iis  sympathizer  with  doubters  who  yet  can  .'how  good 
auclioring  ground  for  belief  in  (5od,  will,  through  his  book,  exert  great  lullucuce  for 
good." — The  Erening  IFisc  nsin,  Miliraukce,  Wis. 

"It  requires  a  wise  and  discriminating  judgment,  combined  with  broad  culture,  to 
compile  from  so  many  sources,  from  all  tongues  and  ages,  quotations  so  uniformly  well 
applied.  Simply  a.-i  a  judicious  compilation,  would  this  work  be  valuable.  The  origiurii 
part  of  the  work  is  well  and  strongly  expressed.    If  philosophic  and  linguistic  erudition 


is  of  niomout,  the  author's  claims  to  his  titles  arc  vrcU  tonnded."— The  Morning  News, 
Dallas,  Texas. 

"  The  stjle  is  very  attractive  and  the  amount  of  research  and  learning  shown  in  the 
book,  is  marvelous.  No  one  can  afford  to  miss  the  perusal  of  this  scholarly  production. 
The  author's  familiarity  with  all  that  has  been  written  concerning  the  rise  and 
progress  of  Christianity,  as  well  as  all  the  other  great  religions  of  the  world,  renders 
him  peculiarly  fitted  to  write  on  sucli  a  subject."— 7'/ie  Dai/,  Waco,  Tex. 

"It  is  tlie  work  of  a  learned  man,  dealing  in  scientific  and  theistic  questions  of  the 
day.    It  ouglit  to  be  universally  read."—  The  Daily  Post,  Houston,  Tex. 

"  It  is  a  very  powerful  argument  and  will  prove  of  special  interest  to  those  who  care 
for  religious  discussions." — The  Express,  San  Antonio,  Tex. 

"  Gou  .\ND  ^Man  is  the  work  of  a  learned  man."  —Constitution- Democrat,  Keokuk,  Ta. 

"  God  .\xd  Man  will  furnish  an  antidote  to  Robert  Elsmere."— //eraZ(Z,  Syracuse,  N.  Y. 

"  It  is  a  scholarly  and  commanding  treatise." — Record-  Union,  Sacramento,  Cal. 

"  He  demonstrates  his  wide  reading  and  information.  Wc  should  say  that  it  was  a 
dangerous  book  for  a  Christian  minister  to  publish."— T/je  Indianapolis  Neics,  Indianap- 
olis, Ind. 

"  The  auth  -r  bases  his  faith  on  the  universal  and  eternal  principles  of  religion." — 
Tlie  Daily  Age-  Herald,  Birmingham,  Ala. 

"  A  book  of  more  than  ordinary  interest.  Judged  by  his  workthe  author  is  a  scholar 
of  high  attainments.  The  book  is  remarkable  as  showing  the  position  of  one  of  the  most 
advanced  thinkers." — The  Record,  Wilkesbarre,  Pa. 

"  Mechanically  this  is  a  handsome  volume.  It  is  written  in  the  spirit  of  an  impartial 
investigator,  of  one  M'ho  makes  truth  and  truth  alone  the  oijject  of  his  study." — The 
Teacher  and  Examiner,  Danville,  Ind. 

"  This  book  comes  under  the  head  of  progressive  ethics  or  advanced  theology.  The 
old  beaten  trail  is  broadened,  traversed,  and  adjusted  so  as  to  harmonize  with  the 
views  of  modern  scientists.  The  autlior  focalizes  the  ages  in  his  book,  draws  inferences 
and  proofs  from  all  philosophies,  from  heathen  systems  of  religion,  and  history.  It  is  a 
book  that,  being  read  with  care,  may  be  read  with  profit." —  The  American,  Nashville,  Tenn. 

"This  book  shows  that  the  author  is  a  scholar  and  a  thinker.  The  work  is  an  ex- 
haustive discussion  of  the  subjects  named."     The  Morning  News,  Savannah,  Ga. 

"Dr.  Bray  has  evidently  read  a  great  deal  and  made  careful  inquiry  into  the 
unknowable  things  about  which  he  writes  with  so  many  of  the  graces  of  scholarship. 
Dr.  Bray's  book  is  worth  reading."  —  The  Sunday  News,  Charleston,  S.  C. 

"  Tlie  inquiries  into  the  immortality  of  the  soul  and  the  problem  of  atonement  and 
future  punishment,  arc  vigorously  conducted." —  The  .lournal,  Lawrence,  Kansas. 

"  To  be  fully  appreciated  this  work  must  be  studied.  Every  assertion  is  backed  up 
with  authorities  of  the  greatest  repute  and  highest  weight." — The  Journal,  Flushing, 
Long  Island,  N.  Y 

"  All  the  q:rstions  concerning  the  origin  and  development  of  Christianity,  or  con- 
cerning its  relations  to  other  cognate  religions,  are  ably  discussed." — The  Weekly 
Herald,  Norristown,  Pa. 

"  It  shows  a  wide  range  of  accurate  scholarship  and  profound  thought  on  the 
«entral  religious  questions  of  the  day.  AVe  can  but  admire  the  candor  :ind  ability  with 
wiiich  the  liberal  and  advanced  ideas  of  the  author  are  presented.  The  book  will  hold 
an  important  place  in  the  literature  of  the  present  era."  —  The  Journal,  Battle  Creek, 
Mich. 

"It  is  highly  spoken  of  by  reviewers  who  have  examined  carefully." — The  Times. 
Port  Huron,  Mich. 

"  A  very  thoughtful  and  strong  book."  —  State  Republican,  Lansing,  Mich. 

"  The  author  has  expended  a  great  deal  of  learning  in  discovering  what  is  perma- 
nent and  universal  in  religion,  and  what  is  local  and  temporal."  —  Tlie  Herald,  New- 
bouryport,  Mass. 

"  A  thorough  discussion  of  the  important  i^roblem  of  the  relationship  between  God 
and  man."—  The  Register,  Rock/ord,  III. 

"  Xo  trace  of  party-spirit,  denomlnationalism,  or  prejudice  is  found  in  the  book." 
The  —  Transcript,  Peoria,  III. 


Reason  and  Dogma 


OR 


FOOTPRINTS  OF  A  SOUL. 


Kv  Rev.  Hi:n-ry  Truro  Bray,  M.  A.,  B.  D.,  LL.  D. 


OPINIONS  OF  THE  PRESS,  ETC. 

■•Rich  and  racy:  full  of  deep  and  serious  interest.  It  speaks  eloquently  for  the 
Oepih  and  sweetness  of  this  man's  nature,  as  well  as  for  the  steadiness  and  incisiveness 
of  his  intellcctu;il  processes.'"— The  Tiinex.  Chicago. 

"The  talented  author  of  'God  and  Man'  has  ;,'iven  us  in  this  volume  one  of  the  most 
absorbing  reli^rious  buoks  of  our  time.  The  book  rev«  als  a  brilliant  and  conscientious 
mind.  There  are  iias>a^as  iu  this  work  that  for  sublimity  of  thousrht  have  few  etjuals. 
Some  passa<;es  are  so  rich  in  pathos  that  the  tears  will  come  unbidden  in  spite  of  every 
effort  to  suppress  them.''— The  Arena.  Boston. 

"Everywhere  characterized  with  scholarship,  and  careful  and  wi.se  study  of  thcc- 
Ivgical  problems.'"— rni/y,  Chicago. 

••Should  be  read  und  Te-xead."— Cincinnati  Enquiro: 

•The  author  lias  tjiven  ('eep  ihought  to  the  problems  with  which  he  grapples.  Dr. 
T3ray  has  conquered  an  advanced  position  for  himself  in  the  world  of  religious 
thought. ■'— The  Tiihune,  Chicago. 

'•The  greatest  work  of  its  kind  I  have  ever  read."— i?<^p.  Dr.  A.  J.  Canfleld,  Chicago. 

"Cani:ot  be  praised  too  highly.  I  enjoy  these  works  more  than  words  can  express." 
—liei'.  Dr.  JIarrix.  Chicago. 

'•I  have  neviT'seen  anything  in  literature  so  valuable  of  its  nature  as  these  works 
of  Dr.  Bray."— Z*/-.  J/cCauxei/,  Janesviile,  "Wis. 

'•Profound  and  scholarly  and  full  of  beauties  in  thought  and  language."— Prf/. 
Crothers,  Xeilsville,  Wis. 

'•These  works  supply  a  felt  need  of  the  a^e."—Rer.  T.  B.  Gregory,  Chicago. 

wish  these  books  could  be  read  by  every  member  of  my  congregation.""— /^fc.  T. 
./.  Horner.  Battle  Creek.  Mich. 

"No  other  works  of  modern  times  .^how  such  vast  scholarship  and  force  of  argu- 
ment."—X'r.  L.  E.  Toirne.  Broadhead,  Wis. 

"Dr.  Brays  works  give  us  a  most  profound  invtstigation  of  the  foundations  of 
religion. "'--./'«/;/<?  Gaijnur.  Grand  Rapids,  Wis. 

"In  all  my  knowledge  of  books  1  have  never  si  en  the  equal  of  these."—//'.  Frisbie. 
Freeport,  111." 

'I  regard  Dr.  Bray's  works  as  the  most  wonderful  and  exhaustive  I  have  ever 
seen.  "—/''.  li.  .fackmun,  Woodstock,  III. 

"Should  be  in  the  hands  of  every  thinking  man.  "— Z'.  A.  Cady.  A.  .)/..  Flint.  Mich. 

'The  airest  and  ablest  exposition  of  the  subject  nearest  and  dearest  to  tvery  mi.n 
and  woman  I  have  ever  read."— £".  /'.  (luiiiix,  Fon  Du  Lac,  Wis. 


^VI^«'l■e  agents  are  not,  «-illier  ••Utxl  anti  SIuii"  <»r  •'Kciisoii  mid 
will  l>e  Hf-nt  poslpjiKl  for  ,<i'.!.5U. 


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